Kingdom Hearts: Paved With Gold
by AuraofOblivion
Summary: [Sequel to Cracks of the Past] The World, now whole again, is on the brink of ruin. The stars have disappeared and threats both past and present threaten to reopen a trench of terror once long forgotten. In spite of Moira's Crescent's warning, Sora and friends dare to dive into a world where the most dangerous are those who dream with their eyes wide open.
1. Prologue: Childhood's End

**A/N: Welcome to the final chapter of our heroes' journey, and I couldn't be more excited to work on it. While I'm still working on Through Smoke and Flames, I wanted to give you guys a taste of what to expect from Paved With Gold so here it is. Fun fact- the title 'Paved With Gold' is based on an english story called Dick Whittington and his Cat (1919). If you find the story it gives you some idea as to the themes of this story but I'll say that a pretty big one right now is sacrifice and gain. Also, this chapter is quite dark so be forewarned. Anyway, until next time, take care and don't forget to follow, favorite and review!**

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 **Disclaimer: Anything Square Enix, Disney, or otherwise is used for non-profit and belong to their respective owners.**

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Chapter 0

Childhood's End

 ** _The Pantheon_**

 ** _Mount Olympus_**

The Council Hall of Mount Olympus stood an impressive nine and a half thousand feet over the region of Thessaly. It had been the humble abode of the Gods ever since the 10 year war in which Zeus superseded the previous hegemony, the Titans. It was seen that ever since the end of that long war, storm nor rain would never strike the peak of Mount Olympus, but instead would know only perpetual ether.

Within the Council Hall were twelve seats and thirteen Gods. The first two were at the top, closer in parallel to the others. This was Zeus and Hera's thrones, with the first being made of black marble and requiring seven steps to reach, each step a color of the rainbow. The second was made out of ivory. Though her steps were only three, Hera's were all made of crystal that sparkled brightly in the sun's light.

To the right of the God of the Sky were the seats of the Gods, his brothers and sons—Poseidon, Ares, Apollo, Hephaestus and Hermes, their seats all decorated in unusual and unique patterns that expressed the elements they were in charge of. Likewise, on the Goddess of marriage's left were the Goddesses of Olympus, the sisters and daughters—Demeter, Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite and Dionysus, once again their chairs all unique to their jobs. There was also the thirteenth God, Hestia, who was willing to sit on the hearth next to the fireplace in order to give Dionysus a spot among the Gods.

"Brothers and sisters, I remember many generations ago when our father wrought havoc and chaos to this very land and all because of fear. The land was swallowed in darkness, and any light was uncertain. I realized when I was but a young man that I could not wait for that light to come save us. I had to be that very light I desired to see. We fought together, we rebelled against our father. Back then, it was easy. We had no petty differences like we do now. It was only by working together that we accomplished a feat previously thought impossible. We overthrew our father and established a system of love, not one of fear.

"My brothers and sisters, do not be mistaken. This is not simply a war among a select few, even if those few are at the forefront of the fight. Innocent people who have nothing to do with this will suffer in this war. War does not pick and choose, it takes and most of the time without discrimination. We must stand by the mortals below and keep them safe, keep them sheltered, as much as we possibly can.

"Let us also not forget that we are not infallible. We are no different from the humans on the ground in that we all have our strengths and weaknesses. What matters is that we acknowledge those faults, those imperfections and we work together to overcome those differences, like we did all those generations ago. In truth, I would have also wanted Hades to be here but-"

"Hades has defied every single thing we stand for time and time again," Aphrodite said while doing her nails. "Let's not forget he has tried to kill your son on multiple accounts and was responsible for releasing some of the Titans from Tartarus in his crazed effort to take Olympus from your hands."

"And all because he pulled the shortest straw. Tough luck, son, that's how it works," Poseidon said with a laugh.

"Perhaps it's just nostalgia. I do fondly remember the days when you were fighting alongside me and him," Zeus said.

"Then you best dispel those feelings of nostalgia. The world was a very different place to what it is today," Ares said. "Can't really say it's for the better either. The malice was building. The world can't go a few decades or so without thirsting for conflict. Fact of the matter is that the signs were all there that the world was about to explode but we all had our heads high in the clouds and chose to believe that the world could better than what history has shown us. Fact is that if the world truly was better than that, I'd be out of the job."

"Well it appears the world finally has some use for you. You're no longer a dusty old fossil," Athena said with a smirk.

"How dare you! If you think I'm going to come to your aid when Athens gets invaded, you've got another thing coming," Ares said.

"Hmph, empty threats. Just what I'd expect from someone on the defensive," Athena said, unimpressed by her brother's words.

"Not today, you two," Zeus warned before addressing everyone. "We must take a vote on the issue at hand. Do we assist the world below or refuse. All in favor say aye."

There was a unanimous approval among the twelve members excluding Zeus and he smiled before continuing, "Then I need not ask of the nays. I hereby declare that the War Council be reinstated. Ares and Athena will do their duty as generals and the rest of us will do what we can to support those who have been devastated by this war."

"I do have a question. To say your bringing us together was sudden is no greater understatement. Was there a reason for that?" Artemis asked.

Zeus chuckled. "I'm ashamed to admit it, but I was convinced by a rather rude young man."

* * *

 ** _Gravesite, Near Riquewihr_**

 ** _North Eastern France_**

"Riku, don't you think you could have been just a bit easier on him?" Xion asked. She, Riku and Belle had travelled about a quarter of a mile off from Belle's home at her request to check in on someone important to her.

"Xion, your negotiation skills are lacking. When faced with someone who is clearly in a superior position, it helps to be assertive," Riku explained.

"If by which you mean interrupting him every time he tried to talk then I suppose you were pretty assertive, yes," Xion shot back. "I kind of felt sorry for him. He had a nice beard. It's pointy!"

"You feel sorry for him because he has a pointy beard?"

"No, I'm just saying that he had a nice beard. It was totally separate from the statement that came before it," Xion said.

"I'm sure it was," Riku said, hiding a small smile from her.

"Well good. I'm glad we've come to an understanding," Xion said. The three of them soon arrived at a gravesite and Belle immediately set off in search for the grave she was looking for. She turned a corner and soon found what she was looking for.

"Riku, Xion, this is the grave of my mama," she announced.

"Your… mother? What happened to her?" Riku asked.

"She died shortly after I was born. I didn't really get the chance to know. I have some vivid memories of her in my head but I don't even know if they really are memories or just fabrications I've made up of her. Papa always said that mama graced me with beauty when I was born, like a magical spell," Belle told them. She knelt down and held out a blood red rose, placing it in front of her mother's tombstone.

"Celine. That's a beautiful name," Xion said of her mother.

"Thank you. It means sky or of the heavens," Belle said. "I just know she's looking down on me, proud of her daughter. It's that thought that keeps me going. Even during the early days of my stay at Adam's castle when he was the Beast. It was that belief that if my mother were here she would be telling me to keep going… that's what got me through those days."

"Do you ever… spend time thinking about what your mother was like?" Riku asked.

Belle nodded. "All the time. My papa has told me bits and pieces along the way. He hasn't told me everything but I prefer it that way. He knows that my imagination can often fill in the gaps. It's like a puzzle he's left for me to work out."

"He knows you. That's good. Wish I could say the same for my old man," Riku said. "My mother also passed away. The difference between yours and mine though was that I knew mine until I was nine years old. It hit harder for me."

"I'm sorry to hear that. But what did you mean when you said you wish you could say the same-"

"Long story short, the man prefers to drink himself to death rather than take care of his own son," Riku snapped. He quickly changed his tone. "No, that's not quite right. He probably did care. He might have even tried once or twice, but he could never quite stop. He gave up. 'Sorry, Riku, I tried', is what he told me. Like trying once or twice is enough to justify giving me that line."

Xion hummed. "Hmm, I know this is a graveyard and all but no need to be such Debbie Downers, guys. We have each other now. That's what's important!"

"Xion…" Riku murmured. She talked about being cheerful now but a month ago, she was completely distraught over Roxas' sacrifice, so much so that she couldn't even get out of bed. She had adopted an attitude bordering on nihilism as she resisted their attempts to help her, saying that nothing mattered to her anymore. Obviously she had snapped out of it within a week of mourning. Riku wondered however if time really had healed all wounds for Xion.

"Yeah, I think it's we head back anyway. That is awful though. I'd like to think though that your father isn't a bad man. Personal loss is a darkness we all feel sooner or later, and we all handle it in different ways. Some let it consume them while others fight back. I don't think a person is bad just for being unable to do something."

"Well, if he had tried harder maybe I'd agree with you. Let's leave it at that and get back to Maurice," Riku said.

"I'm sorry I brought it up," Belle apologized.

"No, don't be. If I hadn't expected you to ask I wouldn't have brought it up in the first place," Riku said. Belle gave a bow to her mother's grave before starting off with Riku and Xion back to the village. There wasn't much else to see in the French countryside, yet it offered a stark contrast to the urban compactness of Radiant Garden lifestyle. It was, quite literally, a breath of fresh air.

And then they saw smoke. It wasn't the gray chimney smoke that they would have been naturally expecting to see upon walking into the village, but thick black smoke coating the sky.

"Papa!" Belle yelled, breaking off into a run.

"Belle, wait!" Riku yelled after her, but her concern for her father took priority.

"Riku, if it's them…" Xion started.

"I know. Let's hurry," Riku said.

Xion nodded and followed after him. As they entered the town, fire violently lashed out from the house on their left, causing them to instinctively duck. Glass shattered from the windows of the house, pouring down like rainfall on the swarms of innocent villagers as they tried to escape the devastation. Several houses were already severely damaged, thus resembling ruins and even some of the other buildings' rooftops had been blown off.

A scream preceded a woman running up to Riku with tears in her eyes. "Monsieur and Madame, please help my child. He is being blocked off from joining with me and his father."

"I'll see him to safety, don't worry," Riku assured her before addressing Xion. "Go and make sure Belle's safe."

Xion nodded and told him to be careful before leaving. Riku set off in the opposite direction. A prevailing melancholy cluttered the streets as Riku navigated his way through those who were running in his direction.

Another explosion from just up ahead rocked an already turbulent town. Riku was no stranger to chaos this past month. A lot had happened in just one month. First in Radiant Garden, where suspicion, anxiety and distrust had grown since finding out about David Xanatos and the dealing of Xanatos Enterprises in general. Riku even had to console a grieving mother in Colette, while listening to her nine-year-old daughter about how much she hated the man that hurt her mother.

Days later in the Kingdom of Corona when Riku had been escorting Rapunzel back to the castle, they arrived. Clad in armor of gold like knights, they marched through the streets, the subjects of Corona standing by silently as wielders of keys took over their town. With Rapunzel unable to go back to the castle, Riku had to take her back to Radiant Garden. Similar stories from Terra, Ven and Aqua also popped up throughout the week. When Riku had ambushed one of the armor clad individuals and asked him who he was, the man made mention of one name: Horus. If Riku remembered correctly it was the name of one of the factions of Keyblade Wielders mentioned in Mirage's book, but still… for them to be so organized in only a month? Was it even just Horus for that matter? Riku ran through the names of the factions in his head… _Horus, Cephadalus, Oberian, Lunarians_ …

Upon seeing someone with a giant key in their hands, Riku summoned the Way to the Dawn with his right hand and thrusted his left forward, throwing _Dark Aura_ at them. The unarmoured person was hit dead centre in the chest and crumpled to the ground. The two other people with him turned to see him but one was quicker. Before Riku could target either of them, the woman on the left grabbed the child behind her and held her out in front of her like a shield.

"Drop it. You take even one step and the kid gets hurt!" the woman yelled.

Riku let his Keyblade drop and raised his hand, but he wasn't so ready to give in just yet. "You're really going to do it? When I take this next step forward, you're going to harm that boy? I don't think you will," Riku said, lifting his foot up slowly and with intent.

"How do you know what I will and won't do?" the woman asked.

"Because you're a person with morals and a conscience, a conscience that would leave you restless at night if you do as you say you're going to do," Riku said. His right foot finally landed in front of his left but the woman didn't react.

"Louisa-"

"Shut up. I'm thinking!"

Riku took the moment of hesitation and acted quickly. He picked up his Keyblade and shot another Dark Aura out of his hand. As Louisa turned back to see look at Riku, she came into contact with the dark projectile instead, knocking her to the ground. Her partner made for the child but Riku threw his Keyblade at him, knocking him to the ground.

"You know, the thing about deterrence is that you have to show that you'd be willing to do the thing you said. You don't have to actually go through with it of course, but if I had believed for even one second that you were actually going to harm him, I wouldn't have acted," Riku said as he walked towards them. The boy, free from his captives, ran towards him and Riku smiled. "Your mother's waiting for you. Just keep going down the street and don't stop, okay?"

The boy nodded and ran off down the street while Riku continued towards the three Keyblade wielders lying on the ground. He picked up the man who had called the other girl Louisa by the collar and looked down to his face. He was just a teenager and the girl next to him didn't seem any older. How could people of that age be roped into doing such horrible things?

He was about to shake the boy awake when a third explosion went off from the bookshop to his immediate right. It wasn't close enough that any of his limbs were in danger but it was enough that he could feel the heat prickling against his skin. The force of the blast blew him back and his back hit the wall of the building behind him.

"I have to hire a chiropractor after this," Riku mumbled as he stood up. He frowned and watched as a figure stepped out of the pouring smoke. A tall man with a tanned complexion, he was draped in a wine red cotton trench coat over casual business attire and a pink tie. His hair was short in length and ash white, his eyes masked by aviator sunglasses with an orange tint to them.

When he spoke, his voice was deep and resonant. "You must be… Riku. You and your friends have caused quite a bit of trouble lately among me and my friends."

"Who are you?" Riku asked.

"Who I am is not your biggest concern right now. All you need be concerned with is what will happen to your friend." The man stepped aside to reveal Xion kneeling on the ground and two more Keyblade wielders standing behind her.

"Xion!" Riku yelled. Partly in anger but also as a defensive move, his eyes caught sight of Louisa as she was starting to get up. He moved quickly and grabbed her, locking her right arm behind her with his own. "If you hurt Xion, I won't hesitate in killing her."

"Hmm, and what do you propose on this… neutral ground you've established?" the man asked.

"You return Xion, and I return her and the other two. Simple to understand, no?" Riku asked, pressing the dull side of his Keyblade into Louisa's neck.

The trench coat man looked towards his companions before laughing. The two wielders behind Xion joined in on the raucous laughter as well. Riku averted his gaze from them to the rooftops behind him to see other people wearing kitsune masks, all of them laughing along. Riku looked back to see the trench coat man walking up to him and stopping a few feet away.

"You know, the thing about deterrence is that it doesn't work if the other person doesn't care." The man summoned his Keyblade and fired. The _Thundaga Shot_ raced forward and struck a surprised Louisa in the middle of her forehead. Riku looked on bemused as Louisa's head slumped backward where it rested on his shoulder.

"What are you surprised for? You said you'd kill her if I hurt your friend. You were willing to take that first step on the road to perdition," the man said. The man raised his forearm and flicked his wrist, pointing at Riku with his index and middle finger. Two of the kitsune masked people dropped to the ground and forcefully took hold of Riku's arms, separating him from Louisa's lifeless form.

"How could you do something like that to one of your own?" Riku yelled.

The person on the left holding Riku drove his elbow into the back of Riku's head and said, "You talk when you're told to talk, dog."

The trench coat man silenced him with a raised hand, causing the young man to ease off of Riku. He walked the rest of the way to Riku and leaned in only inches from his face.

"They say you never truly know a man until you hear him speak, for it was words that unified humanity and it was words that divided it. Speech is an admirable trait that should never be limited. You may talk Riku, but as to whether I'll listen… that… is another matter entirely," he said.

"Let Xion go! Whatever you want, I'm the only one you need," Riku pleaded with him.

"Now that's an interesting proposition. What was it you called him, Jun? A dog? My shoes are rather dirty right now. Riku, you can kneel down and lick my shoes and maybe I'll reconsider sparing your friend."

"The hell?" Riku said through gritted teeth.

"You heard what I said. Kneel before me and lick."

"Don't do it, Riku!" Xion yelled but the person next to her grabbed her roughly by the chin.

"Stop! I'll do it, okay?" Riku said. He dropped to his knees, suckered up his pride and quickly licked the man's shoe before retreating, all the while having to put up the resounding amount of laughter coming from the group.

"You really will do anything to help your friends. I guess I can't say you're not committed," The trench coat man said. "Welcome to the team, Riku. I just know our time together will be one to remember."

Riku slowly stood back up, spitting on the ground repeatedly as the trench coat man left his side. He soon paused however and looked in Xion's direction. "Don't forget to bring the girl."

"No… you said she'd be free if I did what you said!" Riku yelled. He tried to walk up to the man but he was held back by the two who had grabbed him earlier.

"First of all, I said maybe. Secondly, your friend took out a few of mine and allowed a girl to escape, a girl with pure light in her heart, remind you of anyone? Finally, no one is free in this world. Welcome to the truth I've understood for quite some time now. Take them away!" the man yelled.

"I'm not done with you. Let Xion go. LET HER-" Riku didn't get to finish his sentence. He was struck in the head by the pommel of Jun's Keyblade and fell to the ground, blacking out soon after.

* * *

 ** _Les Maison de Lunes_**

 ** _North Eastern France_**

Day after day, Riku was taken to a small room and strapped to a table. A cloth was placed over his face and the sensation of old water poured on him. It felt like he was drowning. His lungs wished for air and he found it hard to breathe even after the torture ended. Still, he knew that Xion was facing much worse, for it was that Riku's room was right next to this small torture room.

Riku turned and tossed for he knew screaming would do no good. He couldn't scream even if he wanted to. His own torture sessions had left him physically drained and unable to speak. Xion though. Xion kept screaming. Long drawn out screams that haunted him even in his sleep.

Every day he was questioned as to the whereabouts of the Princesses of Hearts as well as his friends, but Riku was not one to give in so easily. He had even said it to them and he had meant what he had said: He would rather die than give up his friends. Xion was going through much worse than he was, probably because they thought they could break her more easily. Having his room next to the torture room was also no coincidence. They wanted him to hear these screams so it would impact on his resilience as well. It made him sick to the stomach, but there was nothing he could do about it. He could only hope that Xion was able to stay strong.

But it was clear that frustrations were mounting, and there was only so much uncertainty that Riku could take. During one time in particular—and Riku stressed time because there were no windows with which to tell between night and day—the door to his cell opened and one of his captives stepped through. Just one. Previously there had always been two people just to escort him to the room next door but there was only one now. They knew he held no power to overthrow them anymore. To Riku it was probably the greatest insult.

"You're wanted next door. Move it, dog." _Dog_. That had become popular among the people here for obvious reasons. They made sure to put stress on it as well just to dehumanize. Riku didn't reply. He slipped out of bed and walked aimlessly through the door. He stopped just outside and torture room and the other man opened the door, letting him into the room.

"Xion!" Riku yelled hoarsely. He attempted to run forward but fell to his knees when he was kicked down by one of the kitsune masked people. Xion was a ghostly pale, paler than he had ever seen her. Cuts and bruises lined her face and her hair was incredibly dishevelled.

"Your friend's a tough one," a resonating boomed from the dark corner of the room. The trench coat man emerged out of the shadow and stood in front of Riku. "But I shouldn't be surprised. She IS your friend."

"How long do you plan on keeping us here?" Riku whispered.

"As long as it takes to break you and get the answers I need. You know, the village you were in when you were captured has a rather interesting history attached to it, or perhaps I should say the region. A long time ago, the body of a man was found in the village well. This was discovered by children who, at the behest of their parents, went to this well to retrieve water. What they retrieved instead was blood. Closer inspection by the village chiefs revealed that the man had been decapitated. Three days later and a similar incident occurred in a village not too far from that one. This time it was a woman. Man. Woman. Man. Woman. The pattern repeated until the perpetrator's eleventh kill when he was finally caught in the act and sentenced to death. Not too long after, a twelfth and thirteenth murder occurred. Man. Woman. Villagers couldn't help but establish a connection and it was not uncommon for people to believe in evil spirits or witches controlling others to do their bidding. In order to combat this, they constructed a building through which they could purge the insane from society and potentially exorcise the evil spirits within. This is that same building you stand in today."

"Are suggesting I'm possessed by some evil spirit?" Riku asked.

"Of course not. Only that were you to constitute a threat to society then some of these medieval contraptions would be used on you. Chain him up," the trench coat man ordered. Two of the kitsune masks grabbed Riku and brought him to the wall, attaching the shackles that were connected to the wall via their chains. Left arm. Right arm. Left ankle. Right. All limbs were tightly secured, leaving Riku stretching like a star while facing the wall. The person on his left produced as short knife and cut without care into the fabric of his clothing, eventually leaving him shirtless.

"I figured that instead of doing the same thing again and again only to get the same results, I'd try something different. It is only right that friends, in my opinion, help each other in their time of need. Isn't that right, Xion?"

Riku turned his head as much as he could to see the man placing something in Xion's hands. He looked back to the wall and closed his eyes.

"I- I- can't-"

"Now, now, Xion. Take a deep breath. Remember our deal? If you want to keep him alive, you'll do as I say," said the trench coat man. "Don't worry. It's quite easy. Who knows? After one or two you may even begin to enjoy it."

"Never," Riku heard Xion say weakly.

"Never is a strong word in a world full of possibilities. Now don't hold back, or I'll know."

There was silence while Riku braced for whatever was about to happen, but Riku relaxed at the soft embrace of Xion's voice. "Riku? I'm sorry."

Riku opened his mouth to speak but all he managed to muster was a croak. And then there was unendurable pain. The sharp crack of nine knotted thongs all parallel to each other rang out in the room followed by the screams of its recipient.


	2. Rebound

**A/N: So the structure of this is going to be a bit different from the last two stories. Paved With Gold is separated into four parts, each represented by a different character like in Birth By Sleep. Then after those four parts, you have the final story. This first part focuses on Sora. Last time we left off with our hero, he was stranded on the islands along with Luna. Let's see how things are going for them. Don't forget to review, favorite and follow and if you have any suggestions for worlds you want to see, do let me know.**

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 **Part I: Written In The Stars**

Chapter 1

Rebound

 ** _Two Months Later_**

 ** _The Destiny Islands_**

 _Sora…_

 _Sora…_

"Sora!"

Sora hit the ground with a thud. Groaning, he opened his eyes and looked up at his ceiling. His was a room fit for a mariner, which made sense given fish was one of the major attractions of the Destiny Islands. Swaying back and forth above him was a miniature replica of a ship with two dolls leaning overboard. Another mobile hung above his study desk, fitted with stars, a crescent moon and a carved fish sculpture.

Sora had a reputation among his friends and family for procuring unusual items. When he was younger, he would set out at the break of dawn just before the start of school and go exploring. Seashells, fish bones, lost harpoons… if one were to ask Sora whether he had one of these things, he would be in a comfortable position to tell them that he had numerous of these objects.

That wasn't to say he didn't collect the more normal things either. After a trading card game had become popular in his school, Sora had resorted to spending every bit of his pocket money for a good while on packs, hoping to get all the cards in his collection. Even now though, his card collection remained in a crate just behind his bed, uncomplete. He would very likely never get the chance to finish it either, since the game went unpopular around the time he became thirteen.

Sora reached out for the ceiling to stretch and pulled his bed covers off of his body before getting up. With a dream like the one he had just dreamt, he wasn't surprised in the slightest to find himself rolling out of bed. The person calling out to him… it was one he knew all too well. It all felt so real, except that it couldn't be. She was dead.

He tossed the cover back onto the bed without looking and walked over to the door as soon as he heard another round of knocks. As soon as he opened it, he stepped backwards as a girl with dark chestnut brown hair tied up by a crimson bow walked in. She was wearing a long-sleeved coral chiffon blouse and blue jeans. She also had Sora's necklace hanging around her neck, or perhaps he should say her necklace now. It suited her better, he felt.

"Having a nap at this time?" she accused with a pointed finger.

"Sheesh, I got it, _mom_. Actually, you can't be my mom. You actually knock. I'm coming, I'm coming. Let me just get… a bit more in…" Sora let out a yawn and closed his eyes for a moment, only to be dragged out of his own room by the girl. The houses of Destiny Islands were one story buildings, with the occasional bottom level when factoring in the raised veranda of certain houses. In fact, the only two story house Sora could really think of was the mayor's house downtown.

"We're just going out for a bit, Lara. See you in a while," the girl addressed Sora's mother.

"That's fine, Luna. Have fun, you two!" Lara exclaimed. Sora's mother was quite the cheerful and active woman, with sandy blonde hair and the blue eyes that genetics had bestowed on Sora. "Oh! Do you mind taking Pascal out with you while you're at it? He hasn't had his walk yet."

"Sure. Pascal, come on, boy. Come on." Luna motioned sweetly for the Pomeranian to follow her.

There was a particular story associated with this Pomeranian that Sora could still not believe to this day. He hadn't been there when Sora had left the islands the first time. It was only after coming back with Riku and Kairi that Lana had revealed to him that she had bought a Pomeranian. In the year that everyone had forgotten Sora, she suddenly felt the urge to buy one and name this particular Pomeranian, 'Sora'. When she suddenly remembered him again, she quickly backtracked and named the Pomeranian 'Pascal' instead.

Pascal, who had warmed up to Luna within the span of three days, barked cheerfully and walked over to Luna, who knelt down and tickled the sides of his face. Sora grabbed the leash lying on the kitchen counter and placed it around the Pomeranian's neck before letting Luna take the leash.

As they headed outside, Sora turned to Luna and said, "I get the sneaking suspicion that she and dad want you as their daughter."

Luna laughed. "Does that make me the daughter of three mothers now? My mom, Colette, and your mom."

"That's a lot of moms," Sora commented with a wry smile.

"I wish. No, you're just mad she forced you to get a haircut," Luna teased.

"And I have every right to be. I liked those spikes," Sora said as he caressed his shorter gelled hair.

"Hehe, Lara just needs another girl in the house. We binge watched the rest of our medical drama. I can't believe I was up until two in the morning. It was fun though," Luna told him.

"That sounds ironic," Sora said. "I don't think binge watching till two in the morning is a healthy thing. I certainly wouldn't do it for a medical drama either. Plus, once it's all finished, you have to wait a year or so for the next part of the story to come out. I just think it's better to take your time and savor those things, no?"

"Well, considering what we're doing right now, even if what you say is true, we don't have enough time for it," Luna said. She was ultimately right. It had been three months since Kohle had left them on the island and without a method of transportation to make their way back to Radiant Garden, they had no choice but to think of something else. So from the third week of their arrival onwards, they began work on their secret project.

Sora, Luna and Pascal soon arrived at the shoreline after walking downhill for two minutes. Their destination was all the way on the other side of the smaller island. The three hitched a ride on one of the more adult-sized boats on the dock and began rowing towards the other island.

"You know, I kind of don't want to leave," Luna said as the main island slowly became smaller and smaller behind them. "Your parents, Selphie, Tidus and Wakka… They're so fun to be with. Oh, and you too Pascal."

"What am I supposed to be, chopped liver?" Sora asked.

"Yeah, you're pretty much my side dish. Or would you rather be the starter?" Luna asked.

"Ouch, that hurts." Sora feigned a wince.

"Aw, I'm just kidding. Besides, you always see me so you don't get to complain, mister," Luna said with a playful pinch.

"Fair enough. But yeah, I get what you mean. I'm kind of anxious actually. We're heading out into a world completely different from the one we know. I'm just trying not to think right now of how my mom's gonna react when I tell her I have to leave again," Sora said.

"I'm sure she'll understand. You just have to give her really cute puppy eyes and all will be forgiven in a matter of seconds, almost like you uttered a naughty word," Luna said.

"Is that how it worked for you and your mom?" Sora asked.

"Hehe, maybe…" Luna teased before almost immediately caving in. "Okay, no. My parents always saw right through it. But just because it doesn't work for me, doesn't mean it won't work for you."

"Okay, my mom obsesses all over you. There's no way she wouldn't eventually cave in if it were you that told her," Sora said.

"And pray tell what will you be doing during all this?" Luna asked.

"Making sure every utensil, pot and pan are safely hidden away from probing eyes," Sora replied after a while. Luna burst out laughing and Sora joined in.

The rest of their trip passed by with Luna chatting animatedly about the medical drama she and Lara watched. Sora nodded every now and then but wasn't really paying attention. His thoughts were elsewhere, pondering his most recent dream. Why had it felt like _she_ had been calling out for him? There was this idea in his head that she had somehow broken through the barrier separating life and death to reach him, but that didn't make any sense. How would that even be possible in the first place? Now that he thought about it, the dreams had started around the time he had opened that door…

"Ow!" Sora recoiled after Luna leaned in to poke him on the forehead. "Mind just… calling out my name next time?"

"I did… quite a few times," Luna pointed out. "You weren't listening to a word I said, were you?"

"That's not true, I… it sounded like a great episode," Sora stumbled his way through on the spot. "I'm glad she came out alive."

"Except that _he_ didn't…"

Sora furrowed his brow. "Oh."

"So what's on your mind?" Luna asked.

"A dream… I saw her again," Sora answered without hesitation.

"Sora, she's-"

"Dead, I know," Sora said a little forcefully, causing Luna to jump. Seeing this, his face softened and he continued with added meekness. "If I had the power to control what I dreamt, I would use it in a heartbeat, but there's no point arguing about what I'd rather have. All we can do now is make the most of what we do have and that starts with finding our friends once we leave."

The boat came to a slow crawl until it stopped at the second island's dock. Sora helped Luna and Pascal out before starting off in the direction of the other side of the island. Progress had been slow but steady and unlike last time, Sora was investing a lot more time and effort into making sure there would be no faults with their form of transport.

"So how much food do we have?" Luna asked as they finally reached the raft. This one was slightly more than 1.5 times the size of the previous raft he, Riku and Kairi had built, with large enough space in the middle to carry a decently sized chest of food. Moreover, for better buoyancy, the sides of the raft were reinforced with a combination of wood strapped around extruded polystyrene, something he had bought with the majority of munny that he had saved up.

"Well, accounting for the two of us and the size of the raft, I'd say enough for two months tops. We can't eat just any time we want though. We're going to have to eat tiny amounts to get us through the day until we reach land. It sucks but the alternative is far worse," Sora said.

"I really hope we're not out at sea for two months. Also, it's going to really suck losing so much weight. I don't want to end up looking like a skeleton by the time we reach shore," Luna said.

"Well, we also won't be dehydrated for quite some time if we play our cards right. That's where the tarp that I bought comes into play. Any rain comes our way and we'll catch it and store it in a bucket to drink," Sora said.

"You really have thought of everything, huh? I'm impressed," Luna said.

"Yep, I am a genius!" Sora declared as a mad scientist would, with his arms outstretched. He looked at Luna and dropped his arms. "…is what I wish I could say but you can thank my old science teacher instead when I started asking him a person's 'hypothetical' chances of survival out at sea," Sora said.

"Well, even then, that was pretty resourceful of you," Luna complimented. "So you get a B for effort."

"I'm being graded now. And why a B, hm?" Sora asked.

"Well, you'd have nothing to work towards if it was an A," Luna explained.

"You know the funny thing. I think that's actually the highest I've scored in an exam. Actually, no, take that back. I did get one B in Geography once," Sora said. "What's the highest you've gotten?"

"A. I get a lot of As," Luna said dryly.

"A for attractive, I reckon," Sora said with a cheeky grin plastered on his face.

"Wow! That was a valiant effort. Hey Pascal, look at Sora! He's got jokes," Luna said whilst rubbing the dog's head.

Sora gave a chortle and held up his hand. "You bring yourself down harder than I ever could. Alright, that's enough of that for one day. Let's get to work."

* * *

 ** _Cove, The Destiny Islands_**

The dreaded sun bearing down on Sora and Luna did more bad for their productivity than good. That was fine however. They only needed to apply the finishing touches to their raft and they would be all set. With near victory on their minds, Sora and Luna decided to sit by the paopu tree and relax for a while. Pascal lazily lay on all fours to their side, looking off to the horizon.

"Do you think he knows?" Luna suddenly asked.

"Who, Pascal?" Sora asked, looking towards the Pomeranian.

"Yeah, him and all the other animals. They're completely unaware of everything that's going on around them. That a war's coming, if it hasn't started yet already," Luna said.

"As they should be. I wouldn't expect Pascal to know or even care about something made by humans. I mean, let's say that the world is immutable to animals. We're different because we know that the world changes. It always has and it always will. Who knows though? Maybe they do feel something, like a…shift in the atmosphere, you know?"

"Well, it's not just him. No one here knows about the war either. I guess I'm just jealous. I'm sure this place is like paradise compared to others right now. Just knowing that I'm willingly leaving comfort for what I'm sure is going to be a lot of pain and sorrow is a really weird feeling," Luna said.

"Well, we don't know that for sure, do we? We can't be so pessimistic or it'll just stress us out. The world isn't all doom and gloom. I'm sure there's lots of happiness to be found out there somewhere. There has to be," Sora assured the both of them. "But I'm glad my parents and everyone else on the islands are safe at least. That's a comfort for me if anything."

"And then there's Aunt Kit. Oh dear, I hope she's doing okay. I couldn't bear to lose her too," Luna said. "Hmm, I wonder what she'll do when I tell her I have a boyfriend now."

"Oh, don't remind me. I still have the jitters from when mom found out. How many embarrassing stories has she told you by now?" Sora asked.

"Oh, I imagine just about all of them by now," Luna said, with a finger placed thoughtfully on the side of her mouth. "Including your baby pictures."

"Urgh, she's so embarrassing. Well, at least we got all of that out of the way," Sora said. "What did you think of them?"

"I like the one with you just running around in your diapers," Luna answered.

Sora raised a brow in confusion. "What? What is this photo and why have I never seen it?"

"Lara must have been keeping it near and dear to her heart. She had it in this photo album she showed me. It was really cute and flowery as well."

"Yeah, I'll take a page out of Cloud and Leo- I mean, Squall's books and say I'm not interested," Sora said. He raised one hand upwards and the other to his chest as if reciting an oath. "This day I choose to pledge ignorance and forget I'd ever heard of this photo album."

"Oh, shut it, you," Luna playfully punched him on the shoulder. When Luna's fist remained pressed against Sora's shoulder, Sora gently took it into his hand and began moving it up and down in a handshake like motion.

"I'm going to miss this place," Sora said with a small smile. "It's not too late to start on that medical drama, is it?"

* * *

 ** _Sora's Home_**

 ** _The Destiny Islands_**

After marathoning several episodes with Luna and his mother of _Grey's Anatomy_ , the three had retired for the night. Rather than immediately heading off for bed however, Sora chose instead to slip out through his bedroom window into the night for a walk. He had a lot of things to sort out in his head and usually a walk to the beach was enough to gather his thoughts.

There had been several times in the last three months where, upon encountering them, Sora had deliberately avoided Riku's dad and Kairi's adopted parents. Even his mom had asked where they were but he could not say. He didn't even know. The last time he had seen them, he had relinquished his use of the Keyblade and saw them off. That was the last time he had seen Donald and Goofy too, for that matter.

As he looked up at a starless night sky, too uncertain to be the world he knew, too vast to be suited to this closed off world, he wondered where they were now. Had they made it back to Radiant Garden safely? Had some disastrous event befallen them to which he had no knowledge of? It frustrated him, just like it had when he had lost them so long ago at the age of fourteen, how little he knew of their safety. If he was worried then they must have been freaking out. As far as they knew, Sora and Luna had both disappeared with nary an explanation three months ago. Had they assembled a search party, he wondered? Or were resources too scarce? Just what was going on out there?

"Couldn't sleep?"

Sora spun around to see Luna walking up to him. "I could ask the same."

"Well, gee, I can leave if you want-"

"No, no, no, I was just asking," Sora said, unaware that Luna was just messing with him. He eventually understood that to be the case when she mustered up a mischievous twinkle in her eye.

"I just like coming out and looking at the sky. I can't help but wonder where all the stars have gone to," Luna told him. Sora followed her gaze upwards into the pitch black unknown.

It had started with the meteor shower three months ago. Soon enough, it became obvious to anyone looking out of the windows that those fragments that were falling were not chunks of rock or Gummi Blocks, but stars. Every few days, thousands of stars seemed to whizz across the sky. Two weeks in to this strange occurrence, Sora and Luna paid a visit to a meteorologist who lived up in the mountains at the far end of the island. That even an expert like Professor Stein could not discern the cause of these events, probably precisely because they were unprecedented, was not a comforting thought. Three months in and they were looking at an empty sky, lit up by visual pollution but otherwise void of any of the inhabitants that once occupied it.

Of course panic was inevitable. Rumors that the world was ending had failed to leave Sora's ears over the past few weeks. When he went downtown, it was impossible to not hear something, whether it be two mothers gossiping amongst themselves while shopping or school friends going out to eat. Selphie, quite active in rumors and conspiracies, seemed to buy into a lot and refused to stop talking about the various theories she had heard, much to Sora's increasing annoyance. Even then, he could imagine that it was only a fraction of what must have been going on in other worlds.

"We'll get our answer after we reach land somewhere else. It's pointless to think about it otherwise," Sora said.

"You know, my mom once told me there were people in the past who've used the stars to navigate the world. It's why places that would never have been discovered otherwise have been so. If people didn't believe in following those tiny white dots in the sky, some of the places we've been to may not even be as they are today," Luna said.

"Hmm, you think so?" Sora asked.

"Sure I do. You remember the book we found in Atlantis?" Luna asked.

"Yeah, the one Mirage wrote," Sora said. He wondered what she was up to right now as well.

"It talked about the Turm des Himmels, a tower that was built by a union of two different groups of people coming together. The tower represents the unity of humanity and that there's nothing we can't accomplish if we work together. We can even reach up into the heavens themselves. And if it really was built by those two factions then it makes my point even stronger. The cultural significance of something like that isn't to be underestimated, especially when it comes to motivating and inspiring others to build things just as amazing. It's a ripple effect."

"Touché. I didn't really think about that but you're right. If something as out there as stars can bring people together, what happens when those stars disappear?" Sora questioned.

"They won't."

"Huh?" Sora asked.

"They're still there. They have to be," Luna affirmed with a clenched fist.

"Knowing and belief are two completely different things. Not to say I don't think you're right but for other people who look up to the same sky, those whose hopes are fading away, they probably think differently. That even the stars have abandoned us," Sora said.

"Sora, those words didn't come from them. They came from you," Luna pointed out.

"Yeah, they did. I'm sorry. Maybe I'm just really tired," Sora apologized. "I do want to believe that, I really do, but at the same time I feel like if you weren't here, I'd… I'd have no idea what to do. Heck, I still have no idea what I'm really doing. A part of me thinks that maybe Kohle was right. Maybe I should stay back and let everyone else handle things. Another part of me thinks that it would be inconceivable to just sit by and do nothing. That not just my friends, but everyone everywhere is in danger, and I need to help them. The side of me that wants to run away and the side that wants to fight. I wonder which one's the real me."

Luna smiled and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "That's easy. The one standing in front of me."

Sora gave her a quirky smile and gently lifted her chin before leaning in. Their lips met, not with a kiss, but with their lips brushing softly against one another. If Sora had learned anything in the three months he had been here, it was how to be a decent kisser. It, like many other things in life, was best learned through experience. His hands moved around and caressed her cheek before being lowered to her waist at the behest of Luna's own hands. Sora's head sank as his lips met Luna's own once again. This time, they stayed in place. It suddenly didn't seem to matter that there were no stars in the sky anymore. Sora was seeing them right in front of him. Their tongues engaged in a tango of passion, and Sora soon found himself having to support his own and Luna's body weight as she fell into him like she was melting.

The two soon withdrew, gasping for air. Their arms never left each other though. They didn't want to say goodnight just yet. In a few days, it would be impossible to say whether they would have another moment like this again. It was not the darkness they feared right now but the light that could so easily dispel the illusion of peace in their minds. They had to cherish every certain moment for as long as they could before heading into the unknown.

* * *

Sora marked a cross on the calendar in front of him with a red marker. It would be tomorrow, September 28th, when they would finally depart for the outside world. For today, he had mainly decided upon three things. Go out and just walk around the islands with Luna for a while, finally tell his parents about his departure, and get plenty of rest. Luna had decided that number two should be first, after all, that would be the hardest one of them all to do.

At lunchtime, Sora joined up with Luna by the kitchen counter and her hands wrapped around his, the two moved into the living room where his mom and dad were sat down. Sora's dad had copper hair cut to the same length as Sora's. In contrast, he had brown eyes and was wearing a casual blue shirt and beige jeans. He, just like Sora, was a charming and all around fun person to be with, as Luna came to experience during her three months.

"So what did you guys want to talk about?" Sora's father, Avian, asked.

"Well, it's very important," Sora started.

"Oh gosh, I didn't think it'd be so soon. I mean, you couldn't wait?" Lara asked.

"Not… really?" Sora asked looking at Luna in confusion. He hadn't even said anything yet but apparently his mom was psychic.

"That's nonsense and you know it, mister. You know very well that there's a time and a place for these things."

"Well, I suppose we could have mentioned it sooner but…"

"But nothing. I suppose I should say congratulations though."

Sora scratched the back of his neck. "Thanks? I'm not so sure this is something to be congratulated for though."

"Of course it is. So spill the beans—is it a boy or a girl?"

Silence followed which was quashed by an immediate lengthy laugh from Sora. Perhaps it was the feeling of tenseness and apprehension that was shattered with a simple misunderstanding. Maybe it was the dawning realization of what his mother actually meant, or maybe a combination of both.

"Ew! No, no, no. Not yet anyway. It's something else," Luna said.

"Wow, that really didn't faze you, did it?" Sora asked.

"That's not true. I went all eww and stuff. Besides, she was clearly joking. Come on, Sora, I've spent three months with your mom and you're telling me I know her more than you have your whole life?" Luna asked.

"I- err- shut up," Sora said, disappointed with himself that he hadn't caught on sooner. "Do families even usually joke about those things? Whatever, the point is that we're leaving tomorrow."

Lara rolled her eyes and a sigh escaped her mouth. "Of course."

"Mom, I-"

Lara shook her head and asked, "Why can't we ever just be a normal family? Don't you understand how this makes us feel?" She stood up and wiped a tear from her eye before continuing. "If I'm lucky, I only ever get to see my own son for three months a year now. One day you're here and the next it's like you were never here in the first place. Don't you realize it hurts? When I go to the store with my friends they all ask 'Where's Sora?' and I have no choice but to keep quiet, not because I promised not to tell anyone about these other worlds you've been gallivanting around but because I really don't know where my son goes off to. What is he thinking? Is he taking care of himself? Is he even still alive? Every day, I worry, and I wonder if he's ever taken the chance to stop and think of me and his father."

"I have! Of course I have. It's just that things have been so crazy that-"

"That you couldn't drop in at least every once in a while?" Lara finished for him. Sora remained silent.

"Lara," Avian started with a slight discomfort in his voice. "I'm sure Sora had his reasons. There are just some things that Sora understands that we don't. I'm sure he would have come back sooner if he had been able to."

"It's true," Luna verified. "Admittedly, it's a bit complicated to explain but there really were a lot of things that were happening. But Sora, he rose above all of it. He's a great friend, and more importantly, a great son. It's something any parent should be proud of."

As Lara continued to weep, Sora walked over to his mother and knelt down in front of her, taking her hand into his. "Mom, no matter what happens I'll always be your son."

"Don't say that. 'No matter what happens'… it makes it sound like I'll never see you again," Lara managed to sob out.

"Don't worry. I will come back. When I do, Riku and Kairi will be here with me. We'll be a family again. As for when I'll come back, that's the difficult thing. I can't say. All you'll have for hope is my word," Sora said.

"And what if that's not enough?" Lara asked.

Sora looked down at his mother's violently shaking legs. "Sorry. But if I could leave at least knowing you were still smiling, that would help me immensely."

His eyes met with Lara's and for a brief moment he thought there had been an understanding between the two. Lara withdrew her hands from Sora's and stood up. "I think I need to rest."

Sora didn't object and watched as his mother walked around him and into the hallway. She seemed like a woman without purpose but Sora was sure it was just a passing phase. Nothing would stop him from leaving the islands, even if he had to leave without his family fully understanding or accepting.

It appeared not all hope was lost however. Avian turned away from where Lara had once been and looked towards Sora. "She'll understand. She knows what this means to you. Just… do what you have to, and come back alive."

"Yes, sir," Sora said with a small smile.

"I'll look after him. Don't worry," Luna promised. Avian smiled at her before grinning.

"So when can I expect a grandchild from you two? Twins, maybe?"

"You never do realize when jokes become stale, do you? Pascal, come here boy!" Sora called the Pomeranian over Avian's laughter, choosing to completely ignore the presence of his father from there on out.

* * *

 ** _Seaside View_**

 ** _The Destiny Islands_**

Tomorrow had come sooner than either Sora or Luna had really wanted. After spending the afternoon and some of the evening with Tidus, Wakka and Selphie walking around town and playing volleyball on the beach, the two wielders relayed to the three what they had to Sora's parents. They were more excited by this than questioning and had even asked if they could come with Sora and Luna. That was obviously a no go.

Sora and Luna now stood at the shore with Avian, Pascal, Tidus, Selphie and Wakka there to see them off.

"Where's mom? Didn't want to come?" Sora asked his father.

"Well she-"

"WAIT!"

Sora looked past Avian to see Lara running up to them while waving her left hand in the air. In her right hand was a duffel bag that she was heaving along with her, resulting in her slowing down. When she finally reached him she took a deep breath and set the bag on the ground.

"Alright, here's everything," she said.

"Everything?" Sora asked.

"Everything. By which I mean your clothes are all here and accounted for—shirts, jeans, shorts, and your underwear. I even went to the store early this morning and bought a few clothes for you, Luna. I think they fit. I know someone about your height," Lara said.

"Wow, Lara, I don't know what to say. I mean, you really didn't have to do all of that, even for me," Luna said in surprise.

"Oh, it was all very much worth it, I assure you. Just as long as I know you have fresh undies to change into every day, I'll be-"

"Mom, not in front of…" At the sound of snickering from Tidus, Selphie and Wakka, Sora covered his face with his hand in shame.

"Hmm? Is there a joke I'm missing?" An oblivious Lara looked about in confusion. Wakka, Tidus and Selphie had tried their best to stifle their giggles but it was pretty much worthless at this point.

"No. Anyway, thanks mom," Sora said. She walked up to him and pulled him into a hug.

"My little boy's a man now. I hardly recognize him. I wonder what he'll be like when he returns," she whispered as she tried to hold back tears.

"I can only be a better person than I am now," Sora answered, patting her back.

"Good answer," she replied. When Sora parted from her, he could see his mom's best smile battling hard to stand out amongst the streaks of wetness on her cheeks. Avian was next, who pulled his son into a manly hug.

"To be honest, I'm quite jealous. If only I had this opportunity when I was younger. Listen to me, Sora—never compromise on your beliefs unless absolutely necessary. Got that?" Avian said as he backed away to place an arm around Lara.

"Got it," Sora said. "And make sure you look after mom. She's going to be lonely for a while."

"Your mom's tough. I think she can handle herself just fine," Avian said. Luna walked up to them and also gave them hugs, staying with Lara the longest.

"You two on a raft for who knows how long? Things are about to get steamy," Tidus teased Sora while he was watching Luna and Lara exchange words in low voices.

"Do me a favor while I'm gone, Tidus? Stop reading fan fiction," Sora countered.

"But that's all he has. That and naughty mag-MMHH!" Selphie found herself muffled however by Tidus' hands.

"Oh, something you wanna tell us? Like any dark secrets hiding under your bed, ay?" Wakka joined in.

"Okay, you guys officially suck!" Tidus said, withdrawing his hand from Selphie's mouth. The three of them and Sora burst into laughter and basked in each other's company for the short while they had left.

Sora looked down to see Pascal running around him. He scooped up the dog and held up his paw, turning towards Luna. "Luna, Pascal says bye."

Luna left Lara's side and walked over to Sora and Pascal. She gently took his paw in her hand and shook it slightly, saying, "Aw. I don't want to leave you, Pascal, but I have to. We can't take you with us either otherwise Lara will start to miss you. You'll look after Lara while we're gone, won't you?"

Pascal barked excitedly, almost as if he had understood her. It probably couldn't have been further from the truth. Pascal had no idea that he wouldn't be seeing them for a while. Sora eventually set the dog down and looked to Luna.

"Alright, well it's time we set sail," Sora said. Luna nodded and the two stepped on to the boat they had prepared in advance. Sora undid the rope tying the boat to the dock and grabbed hold of the oars. Before starting to row, he looked back and waved at his family and friends along with Luna. Though his waving was addressed to all of them, his eyes were fixed particularly on his mother's smile. He wouldn't let it go in vain. He had already decided with Luna that if they had to choose a place to live, this would be it. Now it was a smile that was paving the way to that future he desired.


	3. A View of Heaven from a Seat in Hell

**A/N: A shorter chapter than previous ones this time around but any longer and that might have been stretching it. Also, FFXV delayed to November 29?! Well, considering how rough it's looked in previous showings, this might actually be for the best. Anyway, follow, favorite and leave a review if you'd like.**

* * *

Chapter 2

A View of Heaven from a Seat in Hell

 ** _At Sea_**

 ** _Day 1_**

The ebb and flow of the waves that accompanied them on their journey would be one Sora would have to get used to rather quickly. He lay on his back, his eyes looking up at fluffy white clouds while listening to the grating roar of the sea. There was a sweet scent that drifted through the air and Sora found himself closing his eyes every now and then to take everything in.

The islands had long since disappeared behind them and now their only solace was each other and restless blue water. Already he was wishing that he was back in his comfy bed but if he was already complaining then what hope did he have of surviving for any more than that?

"Here, eat up." Luna handed him a piece from the loaf of bread she had broken off along with a plastic water bottle. "You know, I've just realized something. We can't really complain about this, or at least I can't. I remember back when we were in Agrabah, after we broke into the palace dungeon, I spent a whole night out in the Bazaar. I met a young girl there who was homeless. Her name was Mariam. I bought watermelon so the two of us could share. I'm not going to complain when there are others who have it much worse than us. Compared to them, we've been getting the better end of the deal. We just need to have hope, I think."

"Yeah? Well if hope could fix me a hamburger and fries right about now, that'd be great," Sora said. He took a bite out of the bread and hummed. "Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, just trying to make light of the situation. Bread can be pretty tasty when you let it linger on your tongue."

"I can imagine. You have your taste buds spreading all over your tongue accounting for the sugar, salt, acidity and bitterness. Plus, with some types of bread you get this watery taste depending on the type of grain you use," Luna said.

Sora laughed. "That's your experience from baking with Kit kicking in. I can tell."

"Aunt Kit always said that to bake properly, you can't just pull a recipe out of any old book. You have to understand the theory behind it, from your enzymes like glucose oxidase affecting the dryness and elasticity of the dough all the way down to the packaging," Luna said.

"Yeah… I don't think you… need to know all that," Sora said.

"I agree. It's kind of like exams, isn't it? You study for them and you remember the answer or method but it's not like you ever really understand it. You kind of just… forget it after the exam. Well, unless you're a child prodigy or you're being locked inside your bedroom and being forced to study even after exams," Luna said.

"Oh, I know one or two people like that in my year. Selphie's one of them," Sora replied.

"No way… Selphie? You're joking. I mean, she doesn't exactly strike me as-"

"Hey there, don't judge a book by its cover. I can guarantee you that Selphie's parents are pretty uncompromising when it comes to their daughter's education. She's gotten straight As through pretty much everything. Every time you ask her how she did it, she just says its luck. I really doubt that. Or maybe she just has a really good memory," Sora said.

"I'm so happy for her. I hope I get to see her soon so I can ask in more detail," Luna said.

"I don't think you want to do that. Trust me on that one. She's like a Venus flytrap, that one. Once she catches you, she seldom ever lets go," Sora said, letting his eyes drift back up to the sky.

 ** _Day 5_**

Sora finished with his stretches before making way for Luna to do hers. It was important that they stay as active as possible within what small space they had. Back on the islands he had made sure to run through the town every morning but he didn't quite have that luxury anymore.

He walked over to the cooler in the middle of the raft and opened it, grabbing a water bottle. He closed the cooler again and sat on top while watching Luna stretch.

"You know, this is how it starts. Atrophy, I mean," Sora said.

"Don't worry, we just need to give ourselves a good work out every once in a while and we'll fine," Luna said over her stretches.

"Easy to say, but I think you're forgetting that we need energy to stay motivated. Considering we're being conservative with our provisions, how long do you think we can fight off the lack of enthusiasm?" Sora asked.

"Shouldn't it be the other way around though? We're eating so little that if we were to move around and exert energy we'd start feeling really hungry again. Stretches are enough for us right now," Luna said. "And I get to take lots of naps. It's like I'm in nursery again."

"This just in, Luna wants to be three-years-old again," Sora said in his best broadcaster impersonation.

"Oh come on, like you wouldn't want to go back to the days of going on picnics, doing arts and crafts, singing nursery rhymes…" Luna said.

"Are you suggesting we gather round a campfire and sing a campfire song?" Sora asked.

"You may laugh now but when you're bored, you'll be wishing you could go back to those days," Luna said.

"I'm sure I will, but for now..." Sora looked over the edge of the raft at the blue waters. His mouth soon became a wide grin and he looked at Luna. "Seems like a great place to take a dip, don't you think?"

"Um, no, no and absolutely no. There are… sharks in there!" Luna yelled.

"There could be," Sora said, as he started to take his shirt off.

Luna's mouth fell open. "Uh, not _could be_ , there definitely are and why are you taking off your clothes?"

"Swimming with the sharks," Sora said casually. He gave her another grin and Luna moved to hide her blushing face. Sora took a few steps back before running and plunging into the water.

After more than a few seconds of not reappearing above surface, Luna walked over and looked down into the blue waters to see not a trace of Sora.

Freaking out, Luna called for him. "Sora? Sora? Oh no! He was probably pulled into the depths and swallowed by some giant squid monster and- AAGH!"

Sora suddenly rose from the water and yelled, causing her to fall back in shock. Sora laughed and asked, "Did you miss me?"

"Urgh, Sora, you are a complete ass," Luna screamed at him.

"I suppose you would have preferred a merman coming out for a kiss?" Sora asked. "Don't worry, I've got something better. Just… watch over there for a moment. You'll see why soon. Oh, could you pass me the rope in the box?"

But Luna chose instead to look at him in mock annoyance. Sora sighed and said, "I'm sorry. I guess I just wanted to have a bit of fun. A bit too much fun maybe."

Luna slowly stood up and walked over to the cooler, digging into it for a thick brown rope. She soon retrieved it from the side and handed it over to Sora who attached on end to one of the logs at the front of the raft, the direction he told Luna to look in.

"Sora!"

"Hmm?" Sora asked. Luna leaned in as if about to kiss him only to quickly scoop water into her hands and throw it at his face. "Ah- yeah, totally deserve that."

"Well go on, merman, I'm waiting," Luna said and Sora dived down once again. It did not take long for Luna to notice a difference in the speed in which the raft was going. Sora soon reappeared with his hands on the rope and he rejoined Luna back on the raft.

"Ah, that's refreshing. You sure you don't want to go?" Sora asked, as he reached into his mom's duffel bag for a towel.

"Nope. I am perfectly fine with not getting wet," Luna replied. Her eyes widened as she returned to looking in front of her. "Holy mother of dolphins!"

Luna watched in awe as the dolphin soared through sky in a graceful arc before landing in the water. Attached to its dorsal thin was the rope she had given Sora. She had never seen a dolphin up close before but the two toned nature of the dolphin with its darker gray back contrasting with the lighter patches indicated that it was a dusky dolphin, something she had once read in a book concerning oceanic animals.

She stated as such to Sora, adding, "You see how curved its fin is? That means it's a male. Their fins are more curved and cover a broader surface area."

"Professor Luna, the marine biologist. Well you may know about dolphins but have you ever ridden on one?" Sora asked.

"You have?" Luna asked with the face of an excited beaver.

"It was pretty good finny fun," Sora answered as he changed into fresh clothes. He made a spiralling motion with his finger for Luna to turn around for a moment. "Atlantica's another place I'd like to take you someday. There are these really exotic fish that roam about the sea and the coral reefs, oh boy, those are something else. I know you'd love it."

Sora rejoined Luna who was sitting at the edge of the raft and together they watched as their dolphin companion flexed its body and tail in order to move forward. They obviously couldn't have him carrying them forever, but for now it was a great comfort to finally see some form of life other than them.

 ** _Day 10_**

Sora and Luna lay side by side as they watched the clouds roll by.

Ten days.

It had taken days for Sora to accept that this was his life now. His entire life, entire existence, was confined to a wooden raft. Worst yet, he had no idea where he was going. He had chosen to set off east and since then they had found no stretch of land. Sora had a telescope with him that he had been looking through every few hours, but no such luck there.

"I think that looks like a penguin," Luna said, pointing at one of the smaller clouds. "You we used to have these animal crackers at the local I used to run to when I needed some snacks. They basically challenged you to find all the animals, take a photo and send it in. If you got them all, you won a prize. Believe it or not, I got all of them except for the penguin."

"Was it really that rare?" Sora asked.

"Incredibly. It wasn't the rarest apparently. The albatross was the rarest but I got that within my second try. Thus I concluded that my luck is either really good, or really bad."

"Well let's hope your luck is really good. I don't really want to be stranded out in the middle of the sea for any longer than I have to," Sora said. He reached out and pointed to his right. "Looks like Cupid's getting ready to fire his bow at your penguin," Sora said.

"Hmm, wonder who he'll fall in love with," Luna said.

"Let's see… there's an elephant all the way over there. Guess Dumbo's about to find love," Sora said.

Luna turned on her side to look at Sora. "We really need to go back and see Dumbo and Timothy some time again."

"Now that was a fun time. The circus atmosphere, the silly music, seeing Dumbo fly again and getting to ride on him… I mean, I knew him before then so it wasn't as much of a surprise to me but you must have been gawking," Sora said.

"I know! I couldn't believe what I was seeing. You were battling a Chimera on a flying elephant. I could never do that. You know, fear of heights and all," Luna said.

"Well, I'm sure he'd fly really low for you if you asked. Let's see, who else?" Sora clicked his fingers and looked at her with a wide grin on his face. "Bambi!"

"Bambi?"

"Yeah, he's a deer I once travelled with. You always had to have him around. Even when he could do nothing, just having him around made me feel really happy. It was just seeing him prance around, I think," Sora related.

"I'd love to meet him too. Of course, I could keep saying that for all the people you've met until I turn blue in the face," Luna said.

"Blue like Sea Salt Ice Cream?" Sora asked.

Luna groaned and replied, "Oh, don't remind me. It's a hot day. I could use some Ice Cream right now. Ooh, I think I see some in the clouds."

"No, that's just you being delusional," Sora said.

"Kill my hopes why don't you," Luna replied.

Sora let out a small laugh. "I prefer to call it realigning your sanity. Hmph, like I can talk."

 ** _Day 13_**

Sora knelt down and scooped up some water from the ocean with one of the empty plastics bottles he and Luna had shared. Summoning the Kingdom Key, he laid the bottle on the ground and stepped back a bit before pointing his Keyblade.

" _Freeze!"_

The inside the bottle turned ice white and solidified. Capping the bottle back up, Sora sat beside Luna and placed the bottle on her forehead.

"That should help a bit," Sora said after watching Luna hold it in place. He leaned over and rested his head on her lap. Neither of them could find any energy to talk much. Sora had loved the sea ever since he was a kid but even he was starting to get sick of seeing the same scenery over and over again. It was like a repeating scene that was playing out in his mind. Reality had become a snapshot that could bring out a range of emotions from calmness all the way to boredom.

He didn't want to think it but he couldn't help it. He couldn't help thinking that his last days may very well be on a raft out at sea; that they may never come across a fringe of land. Had he been a fool to leave his islands after all? There where his parents loved him and he had people other than Luna to talk to. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy their conversations but seeing her face and hers alone every day was slightly disconcerting.

Sora closed his eyes. He could feel Luna's fingers playing with his hair. Even if he wanted to see at least one new face, he was happy it was this one he got to wake up to every day. If he had been by himself, he probably wouldn't have been able to make it this far. At the same time, he had dragged her into this. It was true that she expressed her views clearly to him, that she would follow him wherever he went. Still, something nagged at him in the back of his mind. Her being perfectly fine with risking her own life to help him was not something he wanted.

Sora opened his eyes and whispered, "I'm sorry."

"For what?" Luna asked.

"For dragging you into this. You shouldn't have to suffer like this," Sora said.

"And you should? Sora, we both have friends to save. Staying behind was never an option. There's no point regretting what's already happened," Luna answered.

"You're right. I'm sorry."

"And you need to stop saying sorry as well," Luna said.

"Sorry," Sora looked up to see the reaction on Luna's face. Sure enough, she didn't let him down, sending him into a fit of silent giggles.

 ** _Day 17_**

"Urgh! I can't take this anymore!" Luna yelled, clutching her head. "Seeing endless blue, hearing the sound of waves day after day, the salty smell, not being able to eat as much as I want. When we get to land I never want to see an iota of stupid dumby-dumb-dumb water ever again."

"Wow, it took you this long to snap? Man, I've been holding it in for a long while now. I didn't want to say anything because I didn't want to sound whiny but I'm glad I have someone to do that for me now," Sora said. The left side of his face was facing the wooden boards of the raft, with his eyes looking out towards the sea.

"You can laugh all you want, Sora, it's not funny anymore. I had hopes, of course I did! But what do you expect when you don't see anything close to hinting that we're near land for seventeen days? I can't do this for a month!" Luna cried. She then started jumping up and down, calling to the skies themselves. "SOMEONE! ANYONE! HELP US!"

"Luna, stop that. You're going to send us overboard," Sora said. Luna stopped and keeled over, bursting into tears. Sora was about to head over to her but stopped when something else caught his attention. Dark clouds hung over the sky up ahead, which could only mean one thing.

"Luna, I think a storm's coming. Help me set up the tarp," Sora said. Luna slowly looked up and then sprung up upon seeing the darker clouds.

No less than half an hour later they were battling the hungry waters as their raft was mercilessly battered left and right by uneven waves. Sora and Luna huddled together underneath the tarp that was acting as a tent while the storm grew more violent and unbridled.

A roar from the sky erupted so loudly that it bypassed the angry waves, causing Luna to fall into Sora.

"No, no, no, no, NO! I hate this. I hate this!" Luna cried, shaking her head wildly.

"Hey, it's okay. Look at me, Luna. Look at me," Sora tried to speak to her. She slowly turned her head until she was facing him. "There we go. Look into my eyes and keep looking. We'll get through this. Nothing's stopped us before. To lose to a storm of all things would be kind of anticlimactic, right?"

"Y-yeah, you're right," Luna said while keeping her eyes on him.

"You know," Sora continued with a grin. "We've done really well for seventeen days. We still have two coconuts left over. Getting a dip in the ocean was pretty nice. We even got to see some dolphins. Best part is we're doing really well with our supplies. Not bad for a pair of newbies at sea, huh?"

"Yeah, and the best part is we did it all with a raft. We put genuine seafarers to shame," Luna joked.

"But…" Sora started.

"But?"

"We can always go a bit farther," Sora said.

"We can," Luna said, the look of someone eager for adventure slowly returning to her face. "So let's keep going, shall we?"

Sora frowned. "Wait, uh, who was trying… to convince who now?"

Luna laughed and said, "I kind of stole your spotlight, didn't I?"

"You sound so proud of that," Sora said. He looked away from Luna's eyes when he realized that the impact of raindrops smacking against the tarp above them had lessened. "See? We managed to scare even the storm away. There's nothing that the two of us can't handle when we fight together."

Luna rested her head on Sora's shoulder and closed her eyes, a smile playing on her lips.

 ** _Day 21_**

As fog set in around the area, Sora and Luna found their vision incredibly impaired. Still, while there had been anything to look at in the first place except the great blue, there was something unsettling about only being able to hear and feel the sound of swooshing waves and the rocking floor under their feet that accompanied to confirm that they were still, in fact, at sea.

Sora started flipping the telescope in his hands after the instrument proved useless for navigation in the current weather. Sora eventually stopped and held the rim of the scope to his lower lip in thought.

"This fog is kind of creepy. You don't think it's the same as the background radiation, do you?"

Sora parted with the coolness of the telescope's metal and looked towards Luna upon hearing her words. He replied, "I'd certainly hope not. Then again, maybe it's not entirely a bad thing either."

"Huh? How is it a good thing?" Luna asked.

"I never said it was a good thing, I just said it wasn't entirely a bad one. The way we got into the realm of darkness was by going through the fog in Snow White's world. Maybe we'll get lucky and we'll be transported to… Radiant Garden? What? It could happen," Sora said in response to the look of cynicism on Luna's face.

"And if it doesn't?" Luna eventually asked.

"Well, that's the thing. It's just luck where we end up," Sora said. "That said, I think this is just normal fog anyway. It feels different. There was this oppressive atmosphere with the other fog."

"And this feels more natural. I'm not quite sure how to explain it but fog forms when cool air is trapped underneath a mass of warm air. We're around this whole body of water so it makes sense for fog to appear here now. Compare that to the Pride Lands where-"

"Luna, that's nice and all but I don't really need to know the science behind it," Sora said. His eyes grew serious and he said, "More importantly… listen."

There was the creaking of wood, like something that came from a ship. It was a most haunting sound that made even the hairs on Sora's skin stand straight.

"I hear it. Do you think it's a ship?" Luna asked.

"Maybe… or perhaps it's a ghost ship," Sora teased, leaning in with a grin.

"Sora!"

"Come on, it was a joke! Besides, there's no such thing as ghost ships… is there?" Sora looked away as the shadow of the ship came into focus. As the ship got closer, Sora could see little decorative items like shells and barnacles breaking off from the bow of the ship and falling into the water below. The sails of the ship were tattered and worn out, something Sora was sure any sailor would take due care to avoid. The bow itself was also quite unique in that it took the shape of a crocodile's snout.

"Sora… it's the Flying Dutchman," Luna said in a tiny voice.

"What? You mean the ship Davy Jones is on?" Sora asked. He had heard tales about the cursed sailor from Luna during their time on the islands. He gave her shoulder a squeeze. "Don't worry. This time, I'm with you. I won't let him threaten you."

He had been hoping that the ship would fail to notice them, and for a moment, it seemed that would be the case. The ship seemed to be heading past them, and Sora and Luna found themselves holding their breaths, hoping beyond all hope that the ship would ignore them and continue on its journey. Then, the ship slowed down and came to a complete stop.


	4. The Sky Pirate

**A/N: So after twenty one days, our heroes have finally come across some form of life, but maybe not the one they exactly wanted. Btw, I'm glad FFXV got delayed. I could see myself getting seriously lazy with writing once that came out so I'll be set for a while yet. I'll also say right now that I'm thinking about covering the PoVs of other characters (Disney and Final Fantasy), showing how they're dealing with the war. It would pretty much be like Leon/Squall in CotP but on a wider scale. We'll see how that goes as the writing process continues. Anyway, enjoy the first part of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.**

* * *

Chapter 3

The Sky Pirate's Tale

Sora and Luna were forcefully brought aboard the Flying Dutchman to the chants and jeers of its crew. As Luna tried to make her way back to Sora, she found herself fighting against the strong tide of sailor that served only to keep her from him. Sora reassured her as loudly as he could over the sailors' cries that everything would be okay and that they needed to remain calm.

Despite his words, Sora found little to be calm about in this situation. They had left the small prison that was their raft but at the cost of possible imprisonment or even worse. Sora couldn't even imagine a scenario where the captain of the Dutchman would let them off with a light slap on the wrist, otherwise what example would that serve to his crew?

Regardless of their separation, they were both brought in front of the captain's cabin where they awaited their judgment. Slowly, the doors creaked open and Davy Jones emerged from his resting place, looking more than a little displeased.

He held his wooden pipe to his mouth and took a puff, intentionally blowing the smoke into Sora's face and causing him to cough. The frown on his face immediately turned into a smile and he chuckled.

"What luck… to run into the Keybearer in the middle of the ocean. I haven't had good news like this in a while," Jones commented. He turned to his boatswain, Jimmy Legs, a sailor with the head of a stone fish, and asked, "What do they have on them?"

"'ad this big 'ole chest, they did. They might be hidin' treasure," Jimmy Legs turned, revealing a fin protruding out of his back to them, and pointed towards the crew. Each of the sailors stepped aside, making way for two crewmembers as they brought forward the cooler from the raft.

Sora looked at them incredulously. "You're kidding, right? It's just a bunch of-"

"A curse!" Luna exclaimed suddenly, causing everyone's attention to draw to her. Luna gulped and nodded. "Yup, you better believe it. We were entrusted with that object because it contains an ancient curse that, if opened, will destroy anything that comes in its path, including this ship. Open it if you dare but don't say I didn't warn you."

"A curse? Blimey! You take it!" The crewman on the left holding the cooler jumped back from the box, causing it to tip sideways with only one other sailor holding it from the side.

" _¡Ay, caramba! Que hay un escape!_ " The other sailor screamed, noticing that some water was leaking from the cooler. This was actually due to the melting ice in the cooler but to the average sailor who believed in curses, it was an omen of terrible things to come… or perhaps they were just idiots but it worked in Luna and Sora's favor all the same. The Spanish speaking crewman dropped the box and ran to the other side of the ship while screaming, " _¡Estoy maldito!_ "

The other crewmembers gathered around Sora and Luna acted in much the same way, although their responses were more muted. Questions were swarming the deck and there was an atmosphere of conflict, particularly around their loyalties to Davy Jones that kept nearby and their fear of the cooler that made them retreat from it as soon as the other sailor had dropped it.

Meanwhile, Luna was able to get closer to Sora with no one to watch over her and whispered, "I think it's working."

"I can't believe we're actually getting away with this. Are you sure this is the Flying Dutchman?" Sora asked.

Jones snarled and pushed past a few of the crewmembers as he walked towards the cooler. "You blooming idiots. You're being conned," Jones said.

"You're pretty confident I'm lying then," Luna said, doing her best to quell the tremor in her voice. "But can you really say it's all a bluff?"

Jones threw a dirty look at her and Luna inched back a bit as if to retreat, but eventually stopped and looked up. He walked towards her and suddenly grabbed her by the neck with his claw-like left hand.

"Luna!" Sora raised his hand to summon his Keyblade but Luna quickly shot him a look that told him to hold off. Warily, he lowered his hand back to his side.

"It's been a while, daughter of Kaylah," growled the captain.

"How do you know that name?" Luna asked through gritted teeth as she grabbed onto the claw hold her. Its grip wasn't so tight that it would snap her neck or suffocate her, but it was still a powerful grip all that same that invoked fear and trembling.

"Xanatos did his homework. Needless to say, yours is quite the story. I believe Dr. Facilier even had a name for you." Jones said and looked at his crew. "The Devil in human flesh, in his words. Must be nice, to be human. They have a name for me too. The Devil of the Seas. Tell me… do you still fear death? Do you long for your parents embrace once more?"

"Death… is just another part of life," Luna started, her mouth becoming a grin. "I can't change what I've done. I've accepted that. If I weren't mortal, I'd have no reason to fear anything and no reason to stay alive either. How about you? Do you fear death? I can tell. It's in your eyes. Don't worry. The reaper's coming for you."

Sora didn't want to watch this. As impressive as it was that Luna had overcome her fear of a man she couldn't even look at when they had last met, he wasn't about to stand and watch Jones kill her.

He quickly summoned Oathkeeper and pointed it at the Jones' beard. " _Fire_!"

A bright flame jetted out of the tip of Oathkeeper and singed Jones' beard, cutting one of his tentacles off. He gasped and loosened his grip on Luna allowing her to hoist her body up through his claws. She kicked forward, both feet connecting with Jones' body and knocking him back into the cabin. Now free of his grip, Luna summoned Dream Seeker and backed up to stand back-to-back with Sora.

"Luna, that was insanely cool and don't ever do that again. You almost made me piss myself," Sora said.

"Well, it worked, didn't it? Not every day you get to stare into the face of death and say a line like that," Luna replied.

"That's too gutsy. What if you were killed?" Sora asked.

"Well, I wasn't so let's focus on not dying to these guys now," Luna said as the crewmembers surrounded them. Before any of them could attack, a shot in the air rang out. Everyone, including Sora and Luna, looked to the source of the noise, which turned out to be outside of the ship on the port side. Opposite them was another ship much smaller in size to the Dutchman. The ship slowed to a crawl to stop parallel of the Dutchman and its owner slid down the rigging and greeted them with a wave.

"Don't suppose you'd prefer the company of the living instead?"

"Balthier!" Luna yelled gleefully.

Sora looked at her before looking back at the man and asked, "Balthier? You're the- the- egotistical guy Luna mentioned, right?"

"So many words to describe me such as dashing, daring, incredibly charming and that's the word you use, Luna?" Balthier asked.

"What? It was the quality that stood out the most," Luna defended.

"Good thing I arrived on time then. Wouldn't want your last impression of the leading man to be a bad one now, would we?" Balthier grabbed onto a rope nearby and jumped off the railing, swing through the air and onto the Dutchman.

"And what business do you have on this ship? Enough of ya. I've got more than I can handle on my plate already with the likes of you three," Jones said.

"Now what exactly does that mean?" Balthier asked.

"Your Keyblade wielding friends stole something of value to me. Now they intend to hold me and this ship hostage along with the East India Company," Jones said.

"You mean your heart?" Balthier guessed. Jones did not respond but looked away. Sora had a feeling he was trying to conceal an emotion that he would never dare show anyone as captain of the Dutchman. Luna was right. He did fear. Balthier smiled and continued, "Now listen here. What say you I offer to get you your heart back?"

"Balthier!" Sora and Luna cried out in unison, but he ignored them and continued looking at Jones who also looked on in surprise.

"What?" came Jones' reply.

"You heard me. You release Sora and Luna now and I'll personally see to it that you get your heart back. What's the name of the fellow who took your chest?"

"Not 'fellow'. A woman. Her name is Hattie Byrne," Jones answered him.

"Hattie Byrne. Now it all makes sense…" Balthier murmured.

"You know her, Balthier?" Sora asked.

"That I do. Not personally mind you but I know where she is. So, do we have a deal?" Balthier said holding out his hand to Jones.

The captain stepped forward and pulled him in, his long tentacle index finger wrapping around Balthier's wrist to do so. "You've got yourself a deal, Mr. Balthier."

"Glad we could come to an agreement suitable for the both of us. Now I'd very much appreciate it if you could let go of my hand," Balthier said.

Jones did so and Balthier flicked his wrist to the side before turning to Sora and Luna. "Well, come along then. No time to waste."

"Yes, sir," Luna gladly agreed. They had begun walking over to one of the Dutchman's ropes when Jones suddenly rose up from the floor in front of them.

"And I'm sure you know the consequences if you try to go back on our deal?" Jones asked.

"But of course," Balthier said. He waited for Jones to step out of the way before motioning for Sora and Luna to go first.

"And take this cursed box off my ship while you're at it," Jones said. Sora saw that Luna had safely travelled to the other ship before returning to collect the box. He knelt down and flicked open the clasps. A gasp erupted among the crew and he gave a satisfied smile before closing the clasps and taking the box by one of the handles.

"I'm going to attach it to the rope and swing it over to you, okay, Luna?" Sora told her. She nodded and he followed through with his plan, sending the box over to Luna who swiftly untied it and sent the rope back. Sora jumped across next and finally Balthier.

Immediately upon touching ground, Balthier turned to the helm of the ship and hollered, "Full speed ahead, Fran! Set course for Port Royal."

"Fran?" Luna began jogging to the other side of the ship but Sora made no attempts to follow her or Balthier. His eyes were glued to Davy Jones as he shouted words to his crew before heading back into his cabin. They had somehow escaped the clutches of death. Surely it couldn't have been down to coincidence?

He only took his eyes off the Dutchman after it was fully past them. He walked to the front of the ship to meet up with Luna, Balthier and a rather tall woman with long rabbit ears, white hair and red eyes.

"You're Fran?" Sora asked.

"It's a pleasure. Luna has told me all about you," Fran said, offering her hand. Sora briefly looked down at her long claw-like fingernails before gently extending his hand forward to meet hers.

"It's nice to meet you. But how did you guys know where we were? I doubt you just came across our location," Sora asked.

"Smart boy. I'll admit not even my intuition is that good. We had a little help," Balthier said. Strange sparkles started to appear in the air that soon gave way to a woman with blonde hair, a billowing blue dress that sparkled in the moonlight and wings on her back. Balthier continued, "It would seem you have a guardian angel."

"Um, hello ma'am," Sora said, smitten by the graceful appearance of the woman. A cough from next to him suddenly made him remember where he was and who he was with. He blushed. He suddenly noticed that the woman was transparent. He could see the railing of the ship through her.

The woman smiled. "I am the blue fairy. Sora and Luna, the world needs the two of you once more. The Fairy Godmother and I have been searching for you two for a while now."

Sora chuckled. "Sorry to keep you waiting."

"Then I shall take you to Radiant Garden if you are ready," said the Blue Fairy, readying her wand.

"Uh, actually, do you think you could hold off on that for a while?" Sora asked. He continued on to regurgitate what had happened back on the Dutchman and Balthier's deal with Jones. "So, you see, ma'am, if the chest is in the hands of a Keyblade wielder, then I think it's for the best that we get it back and see Balthier and Fran are safe."

The Blue Fairy chuckled. "To be honest, I expected something like this. The Fairy Godmother was right. You are as kind-hearted as you are selfless. Very well. Take this."

The fairy waved her wand and produced a glowing crystal object that looked like a bigger than normal tear. Sora caught it as it dropped from the air and held it up for Luna to see. It felt quite cool in his hands, he noticed. "I would normally tell you to wish upon a star to find me but since there are no stars in the sky now, this will have to do. When you are ready, you need only crush this tear and I will appear. Don't worry. It's easier to crush than it looks."

The Blue Fairy was about to take disappear but Luna held up her hand. "Wait! Do you know where the stars are?"

"Unfortunately, I do not. But as long as people have hope in their hearts, the stars will someday return. That's what I believe anyway." With that, the Blue Fairy vanished into sparkles once more that soon disappeared into the sky.

"Then I'll keep believing too," Luna said.

"So this has been on my mind for a bit now but what's with the… you know…" Sora stroked two invisible long ears on his head while looking at Fran.

"My kind are a unique one. We call ourselves Viera," Fran answered.

"Fran's been with me ever since I charmed my way into her heart," Balthier said, only for Fran to scoff and look away. "Wait, maybe I had that wrong. Perhaps she charmed me."

"So which is it?" Sora asked.

"Don't listen to him. Since we have a ways to go, I'm sure the story will come up along the way but for now, you look quite famished," Fran pointed out.

"Oh, right. Do you have something we can eat?" Luna asked. "If not, I suppose we can just eat what else is in our cooler without moderation now but…"

"It's fine. There's some meat, fruit, bread and cheese in the cabin. There's also wine but I'm not sure you kids are-"

"FOOD!" Luna yelled joyously and ran into the cabin.

Sora scratched the back of his neck and smiled innocently at a surprised Fran. "It's been a while."

As soon as Sora walked into the cabin with Balthier, he grinned upon seeing Luna gorging on the food that was at the table.

"How's the food?" Sora called over to her. She stopped stuffing her face and looked to him with a smile.

"Heavenly. The meat's a bit salty but I guess that's to make sure it doesn't get stale. Get in here, Sora, or I might finish it off," she replied before quickly returning to the food.

"Okay, okay, I'm coming!" Sora laughed and made his way to the table that, in itself, was quite highly polished and extravagant, reflective of the room itself. The drapes were garnished in ruby red with a white flower in the middle and the carpet held very much a similar pattern.

Luna also seemed to notice this and stopped eating for a moment, partially to digest but also to talk to Balthier. "This is all really ostentatious. This is… this is… this is so not your ship, is it?"

"Now what makes you say that?" Balthier asked.

"Well, this whole ship looks fit for a royal. It isn't just the cabin either. Even the ship's wheel has these little ornaments on them and I honestly can't see you spending money on them… well, actually I can but Fran would definitely stop you. Also even before that, the steps going up to the wheelhouse have a carpet just like the one in here," Luna deduced with a smug smile. "So, whose ship is this really, Balthier?"

"Is she usually like this?" Balthier asked Sora.

"She reads a lot of mystery novels," Sora explained.

Balthier sighed and leaned his forearm again the doorway. "Well if you must know, I won it in a game of Liar's Dice against some rich bloke in a tavern in Tortuga. He seemed pretty confident that he was a master deceiver so I called him out on his bluff, although I'm not quite sure he was in right state of mind at the time…"

Sora looked on baffled. "He was drunk?"

"I never said that. I just said he wasn't in the right state of mind," Balthier repeated.

"Okay, let's go with that then. Suppose he wasn't 'in the right state of mind'. If he wasn't aware of what was going on at the time, then you still stole it!" Sora said.

"Even if it was as you claim it is, I'm a sky pirate. It's in my nature," Balthier retorted.

"A sky pirate? What's that?" Sora asked.

"You should know considering you've been using one for a while now. This isn't actually Fran and mine's home. Our true home is up there in the clouds." Balthier looked and pointed upwards before looking back at them. "We use a Gummi Ship to get around. Just like you do. I call her _The Sheva._ She and I have been through a lot together, thick and thin. I promised I'd take her all the way to end of the universe if it meant securing the ultimate treasure."

"The ultimate treasure?" Sora asked with a sceptical grimace.

"All of this. Everything Fran, Sheva and I have been through has been nothing but trial and error, a means to an end. That end is Treasure Planet. A planet with the loot of a thousand worlds, or so the legend goes," Balthier said.

"Wait. So you don't even know it exists for sure then?" Sora asked.

"Belief goes a long way, Sora. Remember Sandy Claws?" Luna reminded him.

Sora sighed and smiled. "Yes, I remember Sandy Claws. Fair enough, I guess I'm just a bit cranky from not getting a good bed to sleep in for so many days. I'm sure you'll find it eventually, Balthier."

Balthier muttered something under his breath like "Before I die, I hope" but when confronted about it by Sora, Balthier simply waved it off as being nothing. As much as he wanted to see whether this Treasure Planet really existed or not, he didn't have time for it. His concerns were a lot more immediate than that.

After half an hour of eating and growing accustomed to the warmth that was an actual room again after so long, Sora and Luna stepped outside to a sea now bereft of fog and headed over to Balthier and Fran by the wheel.

"How long until we reach Port Royal?" Luna asked.

"A few more hours. It's probably best you get some rest before then," Fran answered.

"But you still haven't told us about you guys yet. How did you two meet?"

"Right, I suppose I did promise. Here, how about you take the wheel while I talk?" Fran offered to Luna.

"Really? I can?" Luna asked. Fran nodded and stood to the side, allowing Luna to take over the helm. Luna smiled nervously at Fran before looking back at the open sea in front of her. "Well, let's just hope there are no icebergs about."

"We're on Caribbean waters. I wouldn't worry too much about that if I were you," Balthier said. "Now where do I begin? What would you like to hear first?"

"Maybe you can tell us a bit about the Viera and Fran?" Sora asked.

"The Viera are a pretty secluded race that were scattered over many worlds," Balthier said.

"But the worlds are all whole now, right?" Sora asked.

"I did say were. Now they are they merely separated under the same land and sea as well. It makes very little difference to the story either way. In the world Fran and I come from, her village is hidden deep within a jungle," Balthier said.

"The woods contain powerful magic as defence mechanism. As soon as I left I began to forget bits and pieces of my home every day. Now, I can't really say it's my home anymore and if I returned I would most certainly be considered an outsider," Fran added.

"I'm so sorry to hear that," Luna said. "Why did you leave your home in the first place?"

"I saw the world you humans inhabit. Usually when we go hunting, we would stick to the jungle. Not only did it have everything we needed but it was the rules that we could not leave the jungle. One day while I was hunting deer, I went out farther than I should have. When I reached the border between the jungle and the wide open fields, I could not help but be curious so I peaked. That peak was enough to open a whole new world for me, one that I hadn't even known existed. My entire life I had been taught that the world outside was full of dangers and yet when I stepped out into the open, I never felt fear, or any other negative emotion that us Viera had been conditioned to expect of the outside world.  
"I returned to my village with what I felt was a heavy secret. I began to question things about what I had been told, sometimes openly. No one had caught on that I had seen the outside world but I had changed. My curiosity eventually got to me and one night I just decided that I needed to leave. I snuck off into the night without difficulty and since then I have not looked back."

"I can understand that. I've always dreamt of seeing the stars. It's thanks to Sora and his friends that I was able to do that though," Luna said. "How did you find the world outside your home after you left?"

"I was terrified for a while. People would stare at me as if I were a strange thing when I walked past them. I was thinking of heading back to my village to face whatever punishment awaited me for desertion when I came across Balthier," Fran said.

Balthier chuckled. "Indeed. I was just a youth when I came across Fran."

"A youth who was into stealing ships, no less," Fran said, eliciting a look from Balthier.

"Always the glass half empty type, aren't you? Well, to be more accurate, I suppose you could say I stole it from my father. He was a scientist who was studying gummi blocks. He was always absorbed in his work, none too interested in his own son. I detested him. One day, I stumbled across one of the projects my father was working on, _The Sheva_. Probably out of neglect, probably out of a sense of possible adventure, I was lured by my own whims into taking it. Before I could though, I realized that I had a fan admiring from afar, or a stalker. In any case, I asked Fran if she wanted to come along and that was that."

"That was it? Just like that?" Sora asked.

"What's wrong with that? This isn't some folk tale that can be interpreted in different ways. It's history," Balthier said.

"I probably decided to go with him… because of the way he looked at me," Fran admitted. "Or perhaps I should say how he did not. He was not like the others who stared at me like I were an alien. He talked as if he were talking to any other person. Maybe it was because he too felt like an outsider that we were able to bond so quickly."

"Aw, Balthier really does have a charming side to him," Luna said.

Balthier huffed and looked. "As if there were any doubt."

"So, are you two… you know… a couple?" Sora asked.

"No. We're just travelling companions," Fran said simply.

"Say that a little more monotonously next time, why don't you?" Balthier said sarcastically. He soon looked back to Sora and asked, "So how did you two find yourselves on the Dutchman anyway?"

"Well, that's…"

"A really long story," Luna finished.

After having recounted their experiences on the raft, Sora joined Luna at the port side of the ship where she was leaning and resting her head against the railing.

"You know, I think the hammock's a better place to sleep," Sora joked, resting his arms on the railing.

"Strangely enough, I'm not as tired now, probably because something has actually happened to us," Luna replied. She looked out to an ocean again and smiled. "I love this. I really do. I don't think I could ever go back to Alexander after. I could do this…" She broke away from the railing and spun around. "Forever and ever. Hehe, I don't want to stop!"

"Luna…"

Luna stopped and swayed from side to side. "Woah, I'm dizzy. Hm? Yes, Sora?"

"Don't do that again," Sora said.

"Do what again?" Luna asked confused. The grin from her face faded upon seeing how serious Sora was.

"What you did back on the Dutchman. As amazing as it was, I was afraid, not of Jones but of you. You kept egging him on and pushing like you didn't care what he'd do to you, like you didn't have a filter. We can't afford to get overconfident. I know you love all this but don't let it get to your head. I don't want to lose you," Sora said.

Luna gave an apologetic smile and nodded. "I'm sorry. I did get carried away there, you're right. I wasn't thinking of how you felt. I was just on this rush and I couldn't help myself. I won't do it again."

She shared a hug with Sora, who said to her, "Now what do you say to getting some rest, huh? It's been twenty one days."


	5. Hattie Byrne

**A/N: So after looking through a few chapters of Dual Destinies, I realized something. By golly, spelling and grammatical errors trigger me hard. I mean, to be fair this was back in 2012 when I was in high school but there's no excuse now so I'm going to be re-editing and rewriting bits and pieces of each chapter so I don't get triggered and hopefully neither will you. I guess you could say it's a Re: Dual Destinies. Right now I've only done two chapters but more will fixed over the coming week. Anyway, time to get back to Paved With Gold. Case in point with this story btw, the spelling of Fran's race was wrong for the past chapter and I realized that only after a character with a similar name appeared in this chapter. I apologize in advance for that and made the necessary changes. Anyway, let's see how Sora and friends are doing...**

* * *

Chapter 4

Hattie Byrne

 ** _Three Months Ago_**

Sunlight poured through the red drapes of Cutler Beckett's office with it rays being reflected on the floor in the form of uneven individual rectangles. The rays also came into contact with the owner of the room, who stirred in his sleep before gradually opening his eyes. Beckett groaned and looked around him, his eyes finally settling on a bottle of whiskey on his desk. He enjoyed a good whisky every once in a while but it would probably be the last time in a while that Beckett would ever drink with Ian Mercer again. He could still feel the sensation of the liquor burning in his throat.

He eventually looked away from the drink and down towards the unfinished letter that he had been writing. It had issued for the arrest for the Governor of Port Royal, Weatherby Swann, for conspiring with pirates as well as being traitor to the Crown. It had taken some convincing by Mercer but Beckett had to admit that he was right. Governor Swann had loyalty to the East India Trading Company was at best questionable. The man knew too much and he had far outlived his usefulness. Still, that had only warranted an arrest. Beckett could not consider a scenario in which Swann could face any worse punishment.

Mercer seemed to have other ideas. While they were drinking, Beckett had let his guard down and while he wasn't looking, Mercer had come across the letter detailing the governor's arrest. It was Mercer in the first place who had opined that the governor be heavily sanctioned as to his movements. Now he had not so subtly suggested the idea that the governor's removal would have to be more permanent to keep his mouth shut. That was how Mercer operated. He was a man from the shadows that Beckett depended on for his results, regardless of the means he used to achieve them.

While he hadn't been that drunk to outright agree with Mercer when he had told him to burn the letter, Mercer's suggestion had been weighing on his mind ever since. Mercer was never usually one to leave traces behind of his shady actions but in the case that it did happen this time, Beckett would almost certainly have to distance himself from his long-time friend. It would truly be a shame if, after so many years of helping him to get to the top, Beckett would have to abandon his friend because of something like this.

Beckett was about to take the letter when a knock came on his door. He wasn't expecting anyone this early in the morning.

"Come in," Beckett said, rubbing at his right temple. The door swung open and one of his men fell forward, hitting the floor. Cutler sprung out of his seat but froze upon seeing a woman pointing a giant key at him with a confident beam on her face.

"You don't need to worry. He'll be fine," the woman said. She spoke with a Scottish accent and had strawberry blonde hair, green eyes and was wearing a buccaneer's outfit.

"You're a pirate," Beckett said as he sat back down. He slowly made for his drawer where his pistol was located.

"A pirate? Oh, please. I just stole some scallywag's clothing of a line when they left them out to dry. I'm surprised how well they fit. The guy who wore these must have been a shorty," the woman replied with a chuckle.

Beckett's eyes left her clothes and wandered to the metal key in her hand. "That weapon. I've seen it before. Someone else had one just like it. A girl with black hair. Her name was Astra."

"Can't say I recognize the name. But it does pique my interested. I'll have to get acquainted with this Astra person sometime soon. But I'm not here for that right now." The Keyblade disappeared from the woman's hands and she motioned to the door. Two men approached Beckett with a chest and set it on his table, on top of the unfinished letter. Beckett's hand dropped to his side as he stared at the chest in awe. "I heard you were looking for this?"

"The chest of Davy Jones… but how did you know-" Beckett cut himself short at the sound of snoring however. When he looked back at Hattie, he found that while she was still standing, her eyes were closed and her head was tilted to one side.

Beckett cleared his throat. "Excuse me."

The woman awoke with a start and looked. "Woah, huh? Where am I? Oh, that's right. Sorry, I'm a bit drowsy. I've been sleeping for a really long time. Like a thousand years long time. Might take another month for me to recover."

"Sorry?"

"No, it's nothing. Anyway, where were we? Oh, yes, the chest. Well, I'm sure you'll join in me in saying that it's both our lucky day today. I believe you and I can strike a bargain," the woman said.

Beckett leaned out of his chair and pressed both hands against the table. The line of his mouth curled into a smile. "I'm listening."

* * *

 ** _Present Day_**

 ** _The Harbor,_ _Port Royal_**

After The White Rose docked at Port Royal, Sora, Luna, Balthier and Fran disembarked to the unruly commotion of a rowdy crowd nearby. Other than a few guards, Sora noticed that the harbor was unusually empty for being daytime. It was clear that something else was going down much farther on in the town.

"What's happening?" Luna asked beside him.

"Let's find out, shall we?" Balthier answered. He led the way across the bridge and into the town.

"You've been here before, haven't you, Sora?" Luna asked as she searched the port town with inquisitive eyes.

"Yeah. It's a pretty strange town. Not bad per say but… different," Sora answered.

"This town used to be a haven for pirates back in the day. Before the East India Company and when there weren't as many soldiers as there were now, the town was defenceless and needed protection to ward off invaders. The governors decided that they needed to hire pirates to protect the town," Balthier explained.

"They were that desperate?" Luna asked surprised.

"Yes. The town was and still is an important safe passage through which traders are able to access the Spanish Main. Eventually, the town came under the protection of more suitable hands and the pirates were forced out. Nowadays, rather than a utopia for pirates, this place has become a death sentence for them. Hung at Gallows Point."

"No way. That's barbaric," Luna said.

"Isn't it so? But it's easy to do when you're not them or the hangman. All you do is watch and sip a cup of tea like it's a game. I imagine the commotion is coming from over there as well," Balthier said.

"I'm not sure I want to go," Luna said, stopping in her tracks. "I can't see that. I don't want to see it."

"Yeah, I'm not exactly sure I want to see people being executed either," Sora said. "Hey, maybe this is just the chance we need though. If everyone's at the execution, security might be pretty lax. We can break into Beckett's place, steal the chest and be back out before anyone knows it."

"I'd say they have more than enough numbers to make up for whoever's at the execution. Also, remember, our target isn't necessarily Beckett," Balthier said.

"Right. Hattie Byrne, was it?" Luna asked.

Fran nodded. "She recently became the governess of Port Royal a few months ago. Under suspicious circumstances, the governor at the time suddenly disappeared without a trace. As far as we know, the Company have mounted no investigation into his death. Though that would be a private matter kept far away from the public. As for Hattie, no one really knows about her or where she came from. She had no prior affiliation to the East India Company as far anyone knows. We've heard rumors around town that she must have struck a deal with Beckett. What else, if not the chest?"

"So let me get this straight. Byrne strikes a deal with Beckett that she'll give him the chest if he makes her governess and the other governor dying isn't a coincidence but a part of some big conspiracy to replace him with her. Is that right so far?" Luna checked.

"And with the chest in hand, Beckett and the Company have dominance over the seas and control over Jones," Balthier said. "That said, our chest is in either of two places. Beckett's residence or Hattie Byrne's. We best choose carefully because if we make a mistake, we might not get a second chance."

"Hmm, Sora, is it wrong that I keep wondering whether I'd rather have a controlled Davy Jones and a powerful East India Company or a free Davy Jones and a weak East India Company?" Luna pondered.

"We might be helping an enemy but it's not like we really have any choice either. We can't let Hattie Byrne and the East India Company have control over the sea. It's not theirs to rule over. Sometimes the enemy of my enemy is my friend and I guess this is one of those times. Plus, we're doing this for Balthier more so than Jones. That's what I keep telling myself anyway," Sora said.

"I guess you're right. We're not really taking either side here. We're just here to help Balthier. So if we only get one shot at this, where do we go?" Luna asked.

"Hattie Byrne," Fran answered promptly.

Luna blinked at her. "Wow. That was quick. You sure? Don't want to rethink that or…"

"If Fran believes that Hattie Byrne's residence is the best place to start, we'd be fools to doubt her. Being a Viera, she has better instincts than most. I trust her to find the right answer," Balthier said.

"Well if you're sure then that's all I need to hear. Lead the way, Fran," Sora said. The shoddier buildings in the main town eventually gave way to estates much larger and spacious as they head farther away from the slums of Port Royal. They soon entered St. Paul's district, far away from the harbor and where the vast majority of gentry lived. There wasn't a putrid smell floating through the air so Sora figured they were getting quite close.

The mansion formerly belonging to Governor Swann was located just farther up the hill. They stopped just outside the iron gates and beheld the grand building just up ahead. Just at the front alone, there were eighteen windows in total, with seven larger ones on what appeared to be second floor and a further seven above them, much smaller and square in shape. This left the first floor, with four windows on either side of the door in the center portion of the building.  
"I can't even begin to imagine how big it is on the inside. That's more space than I'd even know what to do with," Luna commented. "But on the other hand, if the bedroom is in the front then you'd be facing east when you wake up so you'd at least get to see a pretty rockin' sunrise. Not too shabby."

" _Pfft_. Sunrises are overrated. I'll take sunsets any day of the week," Sora said.

"Says the guy who can't get out of bed early enough to see sunrises," Luna replied.

"We don't exactly have time to waste. We need to scout out the area and come up with a plan of action. There is no room for errors," Balthier said. "It's just a shame we can't see the interior. Any plan immediately goes right out the window when the layout inside is unknown to us."

"Well, if all else fails, there's always the front door. Sometimes the simplest solution is the best one," Sora said.

"If that happens to be the case, then I suppose you won't mind being the lamb to the proverbial slaughter then," Balthier said, placing his arm firmly on Sora's shoulder.

"Hey, I was just kidding. I mean, I would prefer to find a quieter way in anyway. I mean, who needs front doors anyway?" Sora quickly covered his tracks.

"You might not have choice in the matter. If we can't get close enough to scout things out then our only choice is to create a distraction. Since you offered, you don't mind causing a ruckus out front, do you, Sora?" Balthier asked.

" _Wait! Wait! Wait!_ Shouldn't there at least be a vote or something?" Sora asked frantically.

"Okay, those who agree Sora should go say aye," Luna said. A chorus of three ayes followed while a glum look appeared on Sora's face. Luna continued, "And the nays?"

"I hate all of you," Sora replied.

"Then the ayes have it!" Luna declared in an announcer like voice.

"Don't worry, you won't have to do anything yet," Balthier assured him. "We need to scout out the sides and back first. Fran is best for that."

After Balthier gave the go ahead, Fran broke off into a quiet run across the compound. It was probably the feet that gave Fran and other Viera an amazing advantage when it came to hunting. Fran ran in such a way that only the balls of her feet up to her toes ever needed to touch the ground. The sounds of her footsteps were nullified as a result.

After a short while, Fran returned to them and readied her bow. "There are two guards posted around the back and one walking around on the right side. As far as I can tell, the security outside is quite lax."

"Right. There's no reason for them to have security since they wouldn't be expecting any intruders. That makes things a bit easier. And the windows?" Balthier asked.

"The same amount at the back as at the front. None on the sides. There's also a way in from the back," Fran answered.

"Then it will have to be direct confrontation," Balthier said. He put a finger to his mouth and motioned for them to follow him. The group, led by Balthier, sneaked into the compound and pressed against the wall, crouching so that their heads were not visible from the windows. Balthier looked to Fran who nodded and leaned out of her position. She whistled, drawing the man over to her. When he was close enough, Fran turned the corner and drove her palm into his face, smashing him into the wall.

Balthier appeared behind her and held a flintlock pistol up to the man's exposed temple. "You have a good head on your shoulders. If I were you I'd want to keep it that way. Where is Hattie Byrne?" Balthier asked.

"Probably somewhere on the first floor…"

"Probably?"

"Th-that's where I last saw her, I mean," the man replied quickly.

"And the chest?"

"What chest?"

Balthier rolled his eyes and pressed the pistol's muzzle in harder. "You're a smart lad, I'm sure you'll come to answer that question soon, preferably before I pull this trigger in the next thirty seconds."

"Okay, just lighten up, will you? The chest's upstairs in Hattie's bedroom. Hey, what are you planning on doing-"

"Hold this for me, would you?" Balthier asked, holding the pistol out to the man. Confused, the man slowly reached out and took it into his hands. Balthier smiled at him before throwing a punch, knocking the man into the wall and sending him unconscious. The pistol flew up into the air which he caught as it landed.

"Suave," Luna commented, appearing from around the corner with Sora.

"Right. Luna, Fran and I will take down the others and go through the back. Sora, you'll be creating a distraction up front. Think you can handle it?" Balthier asked.

"What if I said no?" Sora asked.

"Not an option if we want even a slither of success, I'm afraid," Balthier said.

"Then… maybe I should stay with him. I don't feel comfortable leaving him on his own here," Luna suggested but Balthier shook his head.

"Also not an option. If the door's locked then we'll need your key to get in. I could try picking the lock but speed is essential here," Balthier said.

"I'll be okay, Luna. Whatever they throw at me I'll throw back even harder. Fran, take care of her," Sora said.

"Am I a third wheel now?" Balthier asked, seeming offended that Sora had left him out.

"Didn't want to burden you, Balthier. You look like the kind of guy who likes things to be simple. Anyway, time for me to make my move. Just be sure to give me a cue when you're done. Good luck, guys," Sora said.

"Good luck. You better be alive when we come to get you or I'll kill you," Luna replied. Sora grinned at her and went back around to the front. He took a few steps back from the window and summoned Oathkeeper. Aiming at the window, he fired off a projectile while running towards the window. The fire magic hit the window, smashing the glass and allowing Sora to jump through. He had only a quick moment to observe his surroundings to see that he was in a dining room with a long table with fine bone china teacups and cloth laid out on top of elegantly adorned table linen.

"What the hell?" A woman who was sitting by the table screamed out. She rose out of her seat and moved her arm but Sora flicked his Keyblade. A bolt of lightning formed in the air above her and zapped her hand, causing her to withdraw it.

"Are you Hattie Byrne?" Sora asked.

"Oh, boy. What has my sister done now?" The woman groaned as two men, a young girl and a woman hurried into the room. They summoned Keyblades, pointing them at Sora.

"So it's true then. You guys were trapped in Kingdom Hearts…" Sora said.

"And you released us. Our savior: Sora." The strawberry blonde haired woman walked up to him with a confident smile. Her Keyblade was the second shortest of the four, sharing the appearance of the Lady Luck keychain. She grinned and continued, "You're famous, you are. Known by many other Keyblade wielders than just my band of misfits. Oh, I'm so excited! I'm absolutely honored to meet the legend in the flesh."

The woman strode up to Sora and extended her hand with a gleeful smile. A bemused Sora slowly reached out and shook her hand, eliciting a squeal from Hattie who looked to the woman near the table and screamed in a whisper, "He touched my hand!"

The other woman let out an exasperated sigh. "You'll have to excuse her. She gets all fangirly like this when she's near someone famous."

"I… see?" Sora replied uncomfortably.

"Where are my manners? Hattie Byrne, pleasure to meet ya. My older sister at the table there is Vera and the wee lassie over there is my younger sister, Sarah," Hattie said, indicating the younger girl. Sarah seemed to merely acknowledge his presence with a wave before returning to her handheld device. Hattie looked past Sora towards the broken window. "You know, you could have just knocked on the front door."

"What can I say? I make flashy entrances," Sora said.

"Well, compared to meeting the legend himself, what is a window?" Hattie replied with a chuckle. Sora was interested if not slightly annoyed at the mention of him being a legend but reserved his questions for the time being. "Would you like some tea?"

"I'm fine, thanks," Sora refused politely.

"So what brings you so… gracefully into our home?" Hattie asked.

"I heard other Keyblade wielders were here. I wanted to learn a bit more about what happened to you guys after I accidentally opened that door in the Keyblade Graveyard," Sora said.

Hattie chuckled and looked down as if she was noticing something on the floor. "Of course you do. Where do I start?"

"How about the Keyblade War?" Sora suggested.

"Very well. It's been so long but it's still so fresh in my mind. We were in the Keyblade Graveyard, known as the Badlands at the time for its severe weather conditions. Even before the battle, strong winds and rain battered the surface, weathering the land. Me and my friends were there for three days. The battle lasted two. I can't say I know what hell looks like but I suppose that was the closest thing to it. I saw many others clashing against each other, killing each other. Even I killed more people than I care to admit. Even now, I still feel their blood coating not just my hands, but my tongue. It is something we can't wash off.

"On the final day came the sound of thunder booming in the sky, the clouds split apart and that was when I saw it—Kingdom Hearts, a magnificent shadowy object that blot out the evening sun in the sky like an eclipse. There was this bright light and I could feel myself getting lightheaded. I thought I was about to die, to become just another body among those that lay strewn at my feet. I soon lost consciousness. Following that, I can only tell you that I was dreaming."

"We all were," Sarah confirmed, whilst tapping away at her device. "But none of us remember what we were dreaming. You know how they say death is merely an eternal slumber? I suppose you could say what we were facing was death."

"And then the dream came to an end. I awoke on the shores of some unknown place with my two sisters and class. It didn't take us long to find other Keyblade wielders either. Before we knew it, we took a boat and set sail, arriving in Port Royal within days. There's obviously more than that but that's the gist of it. Throughout all that though, one name kept constantly popping up. Yours. You were the one to wake us from our long slumber. You reunited me with my sisters," Hattie finished, extending a hand forward to Sora's shoulders, but he swatted it away.

"I hope you realize I didn't do that intentionally. You people sparked a war. Innocent people were involved and suffered. The world almost ended because of you people. Tell me one thing. Where's the person who used to live here?" Sora asked.

Hattie hesitated for a moment before relaxing. "I killed him."

Sora's eyes widened in shock, not from staring into the eyes of the former governor's killer but the simplicity with which she had told him. Her eyes were remorseless, seeming instead to take amusement in Sora's reaction. Elsewhere, the rest of the room seem unfazed by this change in mood. Sora could hear the rapid clicking of buttons coming from Sarah's device.

"Why did you do it?" Sora eventually asked.

"In the words of the new representative of His Majesty the King, Lord Beckett, he knew too much. In my words, it's in my interest to pit the East India Trading Company against Davy Jones. More than likely it'll be Jones that wins, but I don't really care either way. As long as Beckett's control loosens on Port Royal and the surrounding areas, I'll snatch them from his grasp. Killing Governor Swann was merely a way to earn his trust."

"So you kill an innocent man all just to earn your way up the ranks?"

"My story isn't uncommon. If you think the EITC is innocent of this, you don't know how the system works. Besides, if I hadn't killed him, Beckett would have. That's how it works. The old man's fate was sealed the moment he got involved," Hattie said.

"What happened to the rule of not interfering with the affairs of other worlds? Aren't you supposed to be a Keyblade wielder?" Sora asked.

"Your rules, not mine. The world has changed since we went away, and yet it still feels the same. The noise or lack thereof, the colors, the ambience… I don't know, maybe that's just me," Hattie said. She walked over to the table her older sister was at and placed a hand down on the dining cloth. "This is actually real. I'm not dreaming, am I?"

"Dream or not, what you're doing is wrong. I came here to end this war before it could get out of hand. You taking Port Royal for yourself isn't going to help that," Sora said. "Are you helping them hunt down the pirates?"

"Most certainly not. I'm a woman that adores freedom and what can be freer than piracy? It's just that, if I were to oppose them I'd be revealing my hand too soon. Believe me, the last thing I want to see is a child's blood spilt just for helping pirates. Especially if they're innocent."

Sora frowned and glanced down at his Oathkeeper. The adrenaline had worn off and he suddenly felt like a kid trapped in a lion's den.

Hattie smiled at this and said, "I can tell you're not wholly satisfied. That's fine. A proposition then. How about we settle this the good old way, eh? By a duel."

"A… a duel?" Sora asked alarmed.

"Yep. The first one to disarm the other's Keyblade or draw first blood wins. If I do, I continue on my merry way doing whatever I want. If you win however, then I'll leave Port Royal alone," Hattie said.

"Just like that?" Sora asked. For some reason, he had expected her to put up much more of a resistance than that.

"That's what you wanted, isn't it? If that's not enough, then I'll throw in one extra thing. Our true intentions." Hattie gestured for the door, waiting for Sora to take the first step. Spurred on by the answer of these 'true intentions' rather than the pressure he felt at the moment, Sora took a step forward. Hattie smiled and dropped her hand before leaving the room. Sora followed with Vera, Sarah and the two men behind him.

"Who are those two?" Sora pointed to them, realizing she had never revealed their names. It was Vera who spoke instead.

"Our classmates. We, and the others around the mansion, used to study under the Oberian school of thought."

"Oberian… that was the faction that split off from Cephadalus, right?" Sora asked, remembering Mirage's book on the different factions.

"I don't know the details of that. It happened before we were born, but the stories say that our founder, Master Oberis cut off his friendship with Master Cephadalus because he received a 'premonition' that they were going down the wrong path. Cephadalus chose to stick to that path while Oberis forged his own."

"When you say premonition, you mean…"

"He could see into the future. He was half Seer. Do you know what Seers are?"

Sora looked away for a moment. "I do. But what happened to Oberis?"

"He disappeared from our school one day in order to pursue the art of alchemy. He was a sage who was said to have journeyed many lands in search for the elixir of life. Mind you, he was never seen again so no one knows whether he was able to succeed in finding immortality and youth."

"Immortality again…" Sora muttered under his breath. Sora was getting sick of hearing the word. It wasn't enough the one of Moira's Crescent's members could possibly be immortal as well, but now this guy as well? Then a sudden thought struck him. Someone in the past who strove for immortality, and another in the present who had it and claimed to have lived the Keyblade War. The coincidence was uncanny.

Sora was taken from one hallway to the other and then outside. On his way, he came across more of these friends that Vera had talked about. They couldn't have been any older than twenty, and some seemed as young as Sarah. The idea of these people following after them and asking questions about him would have made him e could only hope that this would give Luna and the others some more time.

"It's a lovely garden, you have here. Or should I say the previous owner had," Sora said, noticing the various tulips and rose bushes around the garden.

"Vera's been taking good care of them like they were her own. She may not look like it, but she's a flower type of gal," Hattie replied with a chuckle. Sora didn't laugh along. It was one of those scenarios where he was unsure of whether he could trust the person enough to be able to joke freely with them.

"This should be good enough." Hattie turned in front of him and spun around, her Keyblade pointed downwards and slightly slanted past her waist. "I'm looking forward to hear what the Keyblade wielders of legends can do."

Sora got in his stance before running forward. He swung right but Hattie jumped away before flying forward with a _Blitz_ attack. The counterattack was so fast that Sora could only raise his Keyblade and use the block to run out of the way. Making some distance between him and Hattie, Sora pushed forward again with _Sonic Blade_. Hattie didn't even try to evade or guard, but instead used a _Sonic Blade_ of her own. The two lights collided and slid off each other like butter, throwing their users to the opposite sides of the yards. The two headed in again and smashed against each other with another _Sonic Blade_ , and another after that. Sora tried to follow in with another after that but Hattie stabbed her Keyblade into the ground.

" _Quake_!" she cast. The ground rose below Sora's feet, catching his foot and tripping him. Even as he hit the ground, he prioritized making sure he was still holding onto the Keyblade rather than himself.

"Don't tell me that's all the hero of light has to offer?" Hattie asked.

"Listen, lady. If you think that's all I have then you've got another thing coming," Sora said. He ran forward and struck blow after blow, meeting Hattie's Keyblade. Hattie struck forward but Sora leapt to her side and transformed his Keyblade into a giant rubber mallet painted in red and black, matching his own outfit. He swung fast and hard, driving the mallet into Hattie's face. Hattie was thrown off her feet by the hit into the air but spun and recovered, balancing on the ball of her left foot first before planting both feet comfortably on the ground.

Hattie raised her Keyblade into the air and cast _Ice Barrage_. The ground underneath Sora's feet glowed and he quickly jumped back as large ice crystals burst forth from the ground. He hurled the mallet into the crystals and batted one back to its creator. Hattie quickly cast _Reflect_ , the crystal piercing the shield breaking into tiny pieces which dropped to the floor. As she let the barrier down, Sora warped in front of her. He took pleasure in seeing her eyes widen in shock at the distance he had managed to cover in such a quick time. He swung upwards as Hattie attempted to guard. The mallet overcame Hattie's grip and the Lady Luck Keyblade flew out of her hands.

"Oh, now that was grand. Did you guys see that?" Hattie asked to her friends and sisters. "And I'm not even hot under the collar about it."

"That was pathetic, sis. I've seen weeds that fight with more conviction than you do," Sarah said, her eyes focused back on her video game.

"Ow, that hurts, Sarah. Maybe I'm getting older…" There was a pause followed by Hattie turning in annoyance to her classmates. "I said maybe I'm getting older!"

"Oh! No, you're just a young as ever, Miss Hattie," shouted one guy in the back.

"Such a youthful presence!" cried another.

"Aw, you laddies know how to touch a lass' heart," Hattie replied. Screams from the town reached their ears, causing them all to turn in its direction.

"What's going on?" Vera asked. Sora didn't waste any time. After reverting the mallet back into Oathkeeper, he set off sprinting outside of the mansion's gates and into the main portion of St. Paul's District. Men and women dressed in fine fabrics and intersecting patterns, ran past him as he reached the town. The cause for why they were running appeared to him in numbers. He watched in horror as hunchbacked monsters with slimy flesh over revealing skeletons slaughtered human after human with their rusted looking Keyblades.

One man in particular tripped and tried to get up only to be stabbed in the back by one of them, who then turned his corpse around and placed its bony hand and long fingers over the man's face. A purple glow soon surrounded the beast which disappeared a few seconds after. The monster backed away and let out a howl before chasing after its next victim. The ensuing chaos of the crowd made things extremely difficult for the soldiers who were already there to get a good shot in without harming innocents. They dared not shoot, and Sora couldn't really blame them.

"Mannequins…" came a voice from behind him. He turned to look at Hattie with a questioning glance until she continued. "That's what we call them anyway. They've appeared before. Not here but somewhere else. We need to deal with them quickly."

Sora nodded and aimed for the monster he had just seen. As the Mannequin moved in for a corner young girl and her father, Sora jumped and stabbed it in the back. The monster stumbled backwards and tossed a bit before reaching behind its back and grabbing Sora by the back of his collar. Sora felt himself being lifted off and thrown with his back facing forward into the wall, landing right next to the girl and father.

The creature moved in to strike but Sora pushed off of the wall and landed on his side. With the creature's weapon stabbed into the building, Sora coated his shoes in _Aeroga_ and kicked upwards. The creature toppled backwards and was momentarily stunned, allowing Sora to head over to the petrified father and daughter.

"You need to run," Sora said.

"Thank you," said the father before taking the girl into his arms and fleeing from the scene.

"Sora!"

Sora was fortunate to look past the monster's hollow eye sockets to see Luna running up to him with Balthier and Fran just behind. Luna summoned Dream Seeker and jumped in attempt to cut through the monster. Noticing her presence, the creature turned and guarded against the attack, leaving himself vulnerable to Sora who took advantage once again and plunged his Keyblade into its back. The creature spun on its waste, using its left arm to try and catch Sora who ducked underneath. Luna swung upwards and cut off the exposed arm, sending it to the side.

The creature pounced forward, causing Sora to drop to the ground, and retrieved its arm before somehow reattaching it to itself.

"Mannequins… I see," Sora remarked dryly.

"Sorry?" Luna asked. Sora quickly repeated to her, Balthier and Fran what Hattie had told him. "Then how do we beat them?"

Balthier looked about for a few seconds before finally focusing on something, to which he swiftly pointed out to the others. Across the street was a bunch of rum barrels held tightly within a net that was dangling above the pub.

"Fran and the two of you need to lure as many of these creatures as you can over there. I'll handle the rest," Balthier instructed them.

"Then I'll take this one," Fran said, pulling out her bow. Sora exchanged a nod with Luna before taking off. The street had long since been deserted by the normal folk that resided within the district, and all that remained were Keyblade wielders fending off the attacks of the invading Mannequins.

" _Starburst Blitz_!"

Sora stopped for and moment and looked towards Sarah who had her Keyblade raised skyward. Light that looked like shooting stars rained down from the sky and pierced two of the Mannequins that she had been fighting alongside a pink-haired girl who Sora had come across at the mansion. The shooting stars smashed down on the ground and completely wiped out the two Mannequins remaining. Sarah flashed a look at him and he hurried on. He would avoid making that one angry if he could help it.

A few ways on, he saw Hattie and Vera facing off against one of the creatures. He was about to move on when he noticed a creature coming in for him from the corner of his eye. He leaned backwards, the rusted Keyblade appearing in front of him.

"Luna, found one!" Sora yelled to her.

"Uh huh. Me too," Luna said, though he was unable to see her because his eyes were still set on the creature in front of him. Sora warped past the creature and headed over to the other side of the street where Balthier and Fran were waiting. The Mannequin swung its blade in hopes of getting Sora who continuously warped to evade the attacks. He and Luna soon arrived under the net of barrels and fended off the oncoming attacks before jumping back.

"Fran, now!" Balthier yelled. Fran aimed and shot forth an arrow, splitting the ropes that bound the net to the Pub. The barrels tumbled down and fell on top of the three Mannequins. At the same time, Sora felt a hand wrap around his wrist and turned just in time to see Fran before being dragged back along with Luna. Balthier took out a lit lighter that glistened in the sunlight from his pocket and threw it at the barrels before shooting with his pistol.

The loud explosion rocked the area they were in, and Sora almost tripped as the area lit up in a brilliant yet frightening spectacle of fire. The creatures cried out but soon fell limp into the flames leaving only charred remains.

The flames eventually died down, leaving Sora to look at a puddle of black powder by the front door of the pub. Looking elsewhere, he could see that Hattie's gang had dealt with their Mannequins.

"Let's hope we don't have to fight any more of those. Those things are tough," Sora said, alternating between massaging each shoulder. He paused and looked at Balthier. "Did you get the chest?"

"The chest? No. The heart?" Balthier pulled the organ in question out of his jacket and showed it to him. "Now that's another thing entirely."

"Great work! I guess we can leave you and Fran then to get the heart back to Jones," Sora said.

"You're not coming with us to see Jones? A pity. I'd just know he'd miss you," Balthier said.

Sora chuckled. "It's not that I don't want to see you to safety but who knows how long it'll take to find the Dutchman again and besides, I'm kind of anxious to see my friends again. We'll follow you to the ship, get our things and call the Blue Fairy, but that's as far as we can go."

"We understand. The best of luck to you on your journey," Fran said.

"Hey, let's not dampen the mood. We're not leaving just yet, right, Sora? Sora?" Luna turned to look at Sora only to find he had disappeared from her side. Fran pointed behind her and Luna followed her finger to see Sora walking up to someone.

Sora stopped just short of Hattie who was currently tending to one of her own. Sora looked down and winced upon seeing a bloody wound on the man's face, travelling across the bridge of his nose. He tried his best to ignore it. He had to tell it to her straight.

Hattie looked up and smiled upon seeing him. "Glad to see you're alright. What a terrible thing to happen all of a sudden, eh?"

"You lost. You leave as soon as you've finished treating your people," Sora said without a trace of emotion in his voice. Hattie's grin became a simpering smirk.

"But I haven't told you about why we're doing this yet," she replied soon after.

Sora turned his back and began walking away whilst uttering, "It likely won't matter."

As he walked off, Vera replaced him, looking to her younger sister. "We don't have to stay here. I'm sure there are other places-"

"I like him," Hattie cut in.

Vera looked bemused by this but eventually gave a small chuckle. "Hmph. Trust you to fall in love with the wrong people."

* * *

 **A/N: So with the first part of Pirates done, we'll be seeing Sora and Luna head to Radiant Garden next with the help of the Blue Fairy. What awaits them there? Well, I was thinking about that bonus chapter I mentioned for CotP dealing with the people of Radiant Garden and I figured that would act as the perfect prelude to the next chapter, so while you wait for this next chapter, I'll probably be updating CotP soon with an epilogue that will lead into Chapter V here. Hope you like it and see you for more next time!**


	6. The Things That Change

**A/N: So if you haven't yet, be sure to check out the bonus chapter added to Cracks of the Past since that acts as a prologue to this and the next chapter. Anyway, things are about to heat up *cough* so please enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 5

The Things That Change

 ** _Town Square, Radiant Garden_**

The process of transporting was instantaneous. One second, Sora and Luna could feel the sea breeze and hear the sound of calming waves, the next they knew only the stillness of the quiet night, save for the vibrant humming of a vending machine nearby.

"Radiant Garden, it's been a while," Sora said as if the town could hear him.

"Yeah, it has. Everyone must be pretty worried about us," Luna said. She was about to start walking but the Blue Fairy held up her arm, cutting her path off. Luna looked up in worry. "Is something wrong?"

It was Sora who responded. "Oh, I'd say it's a big something alright."

Luna followed his gaze and perused the posters on the wall with eyes aghast. Each of the Wanted Posters displayed different faces on each one with the rewards listed below. She snatched the poster of her face from the wall and stared at it before holding it up to Sora.

"Is this really what I look like?"

Sora's mouth struggled to hold back a grin. Luna's picture, much like his own and all the rest, were drawn in a cartoonish manner. He wasn't sure who the artist was that drew these but if not for the spiky brown hair and his name under it, Sora wouldn't have even realized that the picture was a representation of him. Still, Sora played along.

"You know, I do think I see a bit of a resemblance, the baby face and all. I didn't know you were hiding elf ears, Luna."

"Oh yeah, I can grow them at will," Luna said. "Speaking of which, they really captured that devilish look of yours. You could put Cruella de Vil to shame."

"I try," Sora said, feigning a sheepish grin.

"HEY, IT'S THEM!"

Sora snapped his head to the right and only barely had time to move out of the way as a projectile of fire travelled down the street towards them. The Blue Fairy evaded the magic, her feet gliding across the ground as she did so. She aimed her wand at the magic user and sent him crumpling to the floor with a beam of white light.

Two others closed in, doing their best to deflect or counter the Blue Fairy's magic with their Keyblades. Sora summoned his Kingdom Key and charged forward, locking blades with one of their Keyblades. His opponent slid his Keyblade out of the locked position and swung, Sora dodging backwards before swinging upwards, unleashing a burst of ice from the ground that knocked the man to the side. He turned around to see Luna warding off an attack by meeting it with her own horizontal strike. She cut her Keyblade through the air releasing a small gust of wind that threw her opponent of balance. During this interval of wind, Luna kicked off the wall near her and spun, her foot making contact with the man's face, sending him crashing to the ground.

"Is that all of them?" Sora asked.

"Do you want to find out?" Luna asked with a question of her own.

Sora nodded. "Good point, but just who are these guys? They're probably not Hattie's group… I still can't believe it's gotten this bad already. Can three months really change the entire world?"

"I believe the answers you seek are with the others. It's best we hurry along before they wake up or someone else notices our presence," advised the Blue Fairy. Happy to oblige, Sora and Luna picked up the ice chest and duffel bag respectively and continued through the marketplace without another word, all the while staying vigilant at all times.

It was impossible to believe it at first. The posters themselves seemed incredulous but the more the initial dust settled, the more it became clear as to the position he and Luna were in. They were officially on the run, enemies of Radiant Garden. Sora probably would have laughed if he was sure that there was no one else nearby.

The fear soon crept into the pit of his stomach. Fear for Leon, Aerith and everyone else in the Restoration Committee. Fear for Riku, Kairi and Neuge, who had been among the listed in the Wanted Posters. Fear for Namine, who he had left behind on her own in order to save Luna. It seemed increasingly unlikely to Sora that Riku and Kairi would ever be at a place that wanted them locked up or worse. If they had escaped, that fact alone would be a big comfort to him. He just hoped that everyone else was safe as well.

"Wait a second," the Blue Fairy said, stopping them in their tracks. She brought up two fingers to indicate the number of people in front of them. Sora and Luna nodded in unison and crouched while the Blue Fairy ascended into the sky. She flew above their heads, fairy dust raining down on them as she did so. The two guards both let out yawns before dropping onto the ground.

The Blue Fairy landed gracefully and motioned the OK for Sora and Luna to proceed. Sora passed by the sleeping couple but noticing that Luna's footsteps were strangely absent behind him, turned to see her moving the sleeping bodies into some strange position where they were interlocked with each other.

"Really?"

"Oh, come on. They'll wake up in each other's embrace like a loving couple. I'm just helping to hasten the process," Luna defended. "Just one final… touch. _Smooch_! There we go."

"Real mature," Sora commented. Luna sniggered and soon joined him before hurrying along with the Blue Fairy. They soon reached the residential Borough and arrived soon after at Merlin's place. Sora was about to knock but Luna caught his hand before he could reach for the door.

"Maybe we should be a bit careful. Let's check the window first just in case," Luna said in a low voice. Sora nodded and was about to follow Luna to the window when the Blue Fairy spoke out.

"Actually. You needn't worry about that. I'll check to be sure," she said. She walked straight for the door and didn't stop, her body phasing in through the solid material as she entered.

Luna's eyes grew big and she looked about quizzically. "Did she just…"

"Yes she did. Can't say I wouldn't mind having that power either," Sora said.

"Can't you do that warping technique?" Luna asked.

"Yeah, but it's not like I can do much with it. I can't travel through solid objects."

"I guess that makes sense. Wouldn't want half of your body stuck in a door. Then you'd just become… Doora! Get it?"

"Wow… you should go into stand-up comedy. You'd be a real hit," Sora replied with a simpering smile.

"Really?"

"No, not really," Sora answered as the door opened to reveal the Blue Fairy and Merlin on the other side. "Merli-"

Merlin shushed Sora before he could finish and ushered them both inside. As he entered the house, Sora set the cooler aside and allowed his body to finally sink. Not much about this place had changed like elsewhere so he was at least relieved that he could have a respite, however brief it may be.

Closing the door behind them, Merlin quickly explained. "There are eyes and ears all over Radiant Garden nowadays. Did you have any trouble getting here?"

"We ran into some trouble as soon as we arrived but otherwise it's been pretty smooth sailing," Luna told him. She walked over to the fireplace and stretched out her arms, the heat rising between her finger tips. "Merlin, what's going on?"

"Oh, it's been one mess after another I'm afraid. I'm just glad you two are all right. You disappeared so suddenly and we had no idea where you were," Merlin said. "I don't suppose that matters now though. You're here and that's that. As for the others, a lot of things have happened while you were gone but it's probably best explained over some tea, don't you think?"

Luna beamed at the wizard. "That would be great, thanks."

With a swish and wave of his wand, the tea was prepared and shared amongst the four cups on the table. The Blue Fairy was the first to pick hers up and placed the rim to her mouth, withdrawing it quickly soon after.

"Ah! Ah! Hot!" she yelled, biting her tongue.

"You have had tea before, haven't you?" Merlin asked. His pupils were slightly above his round spectacles.

The Blue Fairy looked at him and scoffed. "Just what are you insinuating? Of course I know how to drink tea. I'll just… put it down for now and return to it later."

"Mmhm," Merlin hummed before addressing the others. "Now, straight to the matter at hand. As you've probably surmised by now this is a dangerous time for you to be here."

"Yeah, we saw the posters," Sora said.

"Around a month ago, three places key to Xanatos Enterprises were bombed with a fourth being near the castle. The culprits were those Keyblade wielders you see all throughout town now, led by a man named Irva Torvald. In the Xanatos Enterprises Headquarters, one of the areas they bombed, they took hold of hostages. They had two demands. The first was that the Restoration Committee was to cede all control and power over to them. Irva Torvald and his lackeys are now effectively the rulers of Radiant Garden."

"And the second demand?" Luna asked.

"They wanted the seeress," Merlin said slowly.

"Namine! But how did they know-"

"KRONOS were keeping tabs on all of you, remember? I wouldn't be surprised if Torvald somehow got his hands on that information. He may even be in contact with Xanatos. Either way, Squall felt he had no choice but to hand over control-"

"Did he hand over Namine?" Sora asked.

Merlin gave a sympathetic smile. "Namine is safe. There's no need to worry."

Sora let out a sigh of relief and drooped over. "Oh thank you."

"As for Riku and Kairi, Riku left with Xion and Rapunzel before the takeover so he likely doesn't know. Strangely enough, we haven't been able to get in contact with him in over a month. Kairi never returned with Riku though I imagine she's safe. She stayed in Atlantis to find out the answers to the questions she's had on her mind."

"So they're not here then…" Sora said with clear disappointment in his voice. Since arriving in town and seeing the state it was in, it made sense that they weren't here and Sora was kind of glad that they weren't. Still, he had wanted to see his friends after so long. He would just have to wait longer now. The only troubling thing he could take away from that was Riku's condition. He hoped that he, Xion and Rapunzel were doing alright.

Merlin soon continued. "I doubt this needs to be said but anyone who associates with you two and your friends will do so at their own 'peril'. It's pretty vague as to what that means but I've heard stories of people who feel like someone is watching them at all times. A few people have even gone missing. That's not to say it's all bad. Assuming you're not associated with the Hero of the Keyblade, they actually do seem to care about the well-being of the town and its people. Side with us and we'll make your lives happy. Side with them and we'll make your lives painful. A pretty clear choice, no?"

"Choice or not, it's still terrible," Luna said. "So where are Leon, or Squall, and the others now?"

"Everyone except Leon is hiding out. You're not the only ones they consider criminals. While Leon was the one to personally give up control to Torvald, the Restoration Committee as a whole refused to surrender. One day, two of Torvald's men decided to harass Aerith on her way back from the Epcot Gardens. Yuffie and Tifa were there with her and, well, they got into a rather large scuffle which resulted in one of the wielders ending up dead. Yuffie had never meant to do it on purpose, you see, it had only come about out of pure accident. When it became clear that Torvald would only twist the truth to make it out as the Committee swiping at their olive branch, Cid suggested going into hiding. I was going to follow but Cid, the stubborn old man he is, was against it."

"Stubborn old man… now that's ironic," Sora mumbled.

"I heard that. Still, I understand why he refused. Being a wizard has its advantages and I'm technically not a part of the Restoration Committee being that I travel so frequently," Merlin said.

"I'm sure he also didn't want to have you suffer by abandoning your home. I think that, despite your magic and his science mixing about as well as oil and water, he still cares deeply for you," Luna said.

"I wouldn't know anything about that," Merlin said, twiddling his white moustache about. It seemed that regardless of his words, he was satisfied by Luna's reply. "As for Yen Sid, well, he and Mulan are off on a mission. He was just as confused as to your whereabouts but he asked me to give you a message: Find Joshua."

"Find Joshua? What's that supposed to mean?" Sora asked.

"Joshua… I mean, there's only one Joshua I know of. He's probably in Shibuya with Shiki and the others," Luna answered.

"Oh. That Joshua," Sora said flatly. He wasn't particularly enthusiastic about having to meet up with the person who had orchestrated the entire Reapers' Game in Traverse Town once again but if he got to see Neku and his friends then it was a small sacrifice. He also wanted to see the young valley girl-sounding Coco again if he could.

Luna seemed to read his thoughts as she shrugged and said, "Well, at least we'll get to see Shiki, Neku, Rhyme and Beat. I'll also take pleasure in leaving Joshy-boy a parting gift. Whether he'll like it or not though, well, who can say?"

"Can't say I wouldn't pay to see that," Sora said flashing a grin. He looked back at Merlin. "And everyone else? Have you heard from them?"

Merlin looked about uneasily for a second before pointing to his armchair. "I think it might be best if you sit down to hear this."

Sora frowned. "What's wrong?"

Merlin sighed and looked downwards at his feet. "I'm not quite sure how to put this. Whatever it is, it's certainly not light. You see, the moment he came back, Riku told us about something that happened back when he and Kairi were in Twilight Town. I'm sorry to tell you this but the mansion back in Twilight Town burned down in their pursuit of Kefka and, well…" here Sora could see Merlin swallowing down hard before speaking again. "Roxas was in it. He didn't make it out alive."

Sora didn't react for a good while. He expected any moment for someone to come out and say 'April Fools' and have it all be just a joke. But it most certainly wasn't April and he was sure no one would be so careless as to lie about someone dying.

His lips curled into a smile. "You're joking, right? Merlin, please tell me you're joking."

"You know full well I wouldn't joke about something like this. I'm sorry," Merlin replied solemnly. "I heard from Riku that he gave his life to save Xion."

Sora felt as if something had cracked in his mind. His hand was moving about, searching for something. They soon found small and gentle hands which guided him towards the armchair. Somehow, Sora found his way onto the comfy chair though he couldn't say it helped much. He felt weak and shaky, as if someone had just punched him in the gut. There was no way something like this could be happening as soon as he reached here, a town he once thought was like a second home to him.

Luna looked at Sora before glancing over to fireplace. "This can't be happening. Kefka-"

"Has been brought to justice, according to Xion. While I can't say revenge is justified, I don't blame Xion for doing what she did. It's easy to wax philosophies until you're in the middle of the firefight yourself."

"This is terrible… we… have to do something!" Luna shouted only for her to be shushed down by both Merlin and the Blue Fairy. She put her hand on her mouth as if having just heard a naughty word before dropping them and swiftly apologizing.

"I don't wish to sour the mood even further but as of right now, you are not in a position to do anything," the Blue Fairy said. "There are wanted posters all over town. As much as I would like to think the town still has your back, it's not a guarantee, especially when foul play is afoot. Fear can do terrible things to the heart and those who may not have considered betrayal once may think twice now with their lives on the line."

"If we don't know who we can trust and who we can't, then what are we supposed to do? Just leave Radiant Garden like this?" Luna asked.

"You may have no choice. But you needn't worry. The people of Radiant Garden shall persist. They have not come this far to let the building blocks tumble. That said, I think we should at least let the Restoration Committee know you're alright. Knowing that alone may provide a boost in morale," answered the Blue Fairy. She moved for her cup again and moved to take a sip, sighing as she did so. "Ah, much better."

"When you say a boost in morale, you mean…"

"The battle for Radiant Garden. It will inevitably come and when it does, the side that prevails will be the side that is the most determined. Until that time comes however, you and Sora must be their pillars. The pillars that hold their hope, and their future," the Blue Fairy said. She seemed to glide over to Sora's chair and bent down, forcing him to look directly into her eyes. He saw compassion behind them, something he wasn't sure he deserved right now.

"I'll be alright. I have to be…" Sora murmured.

"No. You're alright when you're alright. Don't force yourself when you know you can't," advised the Blue Fairy.

"Sorry, poor choice of words. What I meant to say is that as much as I want to grieve right now, there are bigger things at stake here, like you said. The others need to know we're safe and sound," Sora acknowledged with a pained smile. "So where can we find the others?"

"They should be somewhere just outside of Radiant Garden. Cid never told me the exact location because the less I knew the better," Merlin said.

"Hmm, well we'll check it out. Not sure how we're going to get past Torvald and his guys though," Sora said.

"Oh, I want to see how Colette and Stephanie are doing as well!" Luna added. "Say, what were they doing the last time you saw them, Sora?"

"Oh, I- uh… can't say I remember. It's been a while," Sora lied. He didn't really want Luna to know that he had dressed up as a cartoon character and had performed in front of the two. That was when he remembered Jayne. He mentally slapped himself for having forgotten how abruptly their last moments had ended. He had even promised to join her and the rest of the cast for a celebratory meal. He would need to find a way of getting in contact with her as well.

"It's a shame we can't spend too long with them, huh? I mean, if we're discovered, then they'll probably get in trouble. I couldn't stand to see that happening," said Luna.

"Yeah. Anyway…" Sora stood up and walked over to the teacup which had been left for him. He examined it for a moment though he wasn't so much thinking about what he was looking about as he was thinking about Roxas. Suddenly aware of three pairs of eyes on him, he gulped down the warm liquid and slammed it back down on the table with a satisfied sigh. "Alright, I'm ready."

"Not just yet. I have two more things for you before you leave. The first… hmm, one moment." And just like that, Merlin disappeared with a poof of smoke. He returned a few seconds later with three small human looking figures by his side.

"The Gullwings! How are you three doing?" Sora asked.

"Alright now that you're here. I swear this old fart's been trying to kill us ever since Cid and the others left," Rikku whined.

"Now watch your language right there, missy, or need I remind you what we do to potty mouths such as yourself around here?" Merlin warned, preparing his wand.

"Oh, just kidding, heh heh. My, that is a glorious beard you have there," Rikku pandered quickly.

"I'm curious. Why do you say he's been trying to kill you?" the Blue Fairy asked.

"Since the others went into hiding, we've had to work double- no, triple duty to make up for the lack of manpower. We barely get any free time to go treasure hunting," Yuna said.

"And it's not like we get paid any more than we normally do," Paine added.

"Oh, Merlin, you should have at least given them some rest every once in a while. After all, overworked workers make for angry workers," the Blue Fairy said.

"Well, the mops certainly weren't going to do all of the work. But you're free to do as you please now. Sora needs you a lot more than I do right now," Merlin said. "Plus there's always Palom and Porom. Well, at least Porom will be happy to help out anyway. After the other one messed with my potions, he'll most certainly need to be monitored."

"Poor Palom. He's been relegated to 'the other one' now. When Merlin holds a grudge he really doesn't let go, even against kids," Luna whispered next to Sora causing him to chuckle. She looked back to Merlin and asked, "And the second thing you have for us?"

"Ah. Cid told me to give this to you if you ever decided to come back. It's your own Personal Handiphone System, or a PHS for short. It does… things and stuff," Merlin mumbled the last few words.

Luna raised an eyebrow. "Things and stuff?"

Merlin threw his hands up in annoyance. "Oh, I don't know. I never understood technology. Everywhere I go, I see people clinging to these things like their lives depend on them and staring at the screen like zombies. Why, back in my day, delivering mail by owl was perfectly acceptable and we certainly didn't need-"

The Blue Fairy gulped down the rest of the tea and quickly cut in. "Well, it's been nice seeing you, Merlin, but I think we best be off."

"Oh, yes, yes, of course," Merlin mumbled. He waved his wand about and two orbs flew out, one entering Sora's chest and the other Luna's. "There you go. You should both be able to summon Yuna, Rikku and Paine like before now. Of course, I shouldn't need to tell you that you can't summon them at the same time."

"Thanks, Merlin. Glad to be working with you three again. Alright, I'm not sure when we'll see you again, Merlin, but I hope it's sooner rather than later," Sora said.

"And I look forward to when that day comes," Merlin said. Luna ran up to him and gave him a hug, startling the wizard for a few seconds. He soon recovered however and embraced her with a smile on his face. "Don't worry, Luna. I'll keep the book shop spick and span for your return."

Sora attempted to make for the cooler again when the Blue Fairy stopped him and said, "You can leave your things here. I'll come back to get them when we leave."

"Safe travels, you two!" Merlin bid with a wave as the Blue Fairy opened the door, exposing them to the silent darkness. Now back outside, Sora suddenly felt vulnerable again. As much as he wanted to stay warm by Merlin's fire, he knew that he couldn't stay in Radiant Garden for long.

"You know, a lot of things have changed in this town, and it's really frightening that they've changed so drastically, but at least you can always count on Merlin being Merlin," Luna remarked as they ascended up they walked through the streets of the residential district.

"I'm glad to see he's doing alright without Cid and the others being there with him," Sora said.

"That may or may not be a good thing. Merlin is quite used to being alone and handling things himself. It's second nature to him because of his past. He's travelled quite a lot and always alone. The reason he's managed to accumulate all that experience and knowledge is because of his travels, and yet I can't help but feel sorry for him. What use is all that knowledge when you have no one to share it with?" the Blue Fairy explained.

"That's not good. No one should have to be alone for so long like that," Luna said.

"And yet it is the road he took. Though, that is not to say he didn't admire company back then. He had a pupil he took under his wing at one point who became a king," the Blue Fairy said.

"Wow, that's pretty impressive! Maybe if I study under him, he can make me a queen," Luna replied with a dreamy look on her face.

"I imagine your first decree as queen would be all the Sea Salt Ice Cream in the world at your doorstep, huh?" Sora asked.

"If I wanted diabetes, sure," Luna replied. As he eyes fell away from Sora, they caught sight of something very close by. She quickly called out to Sora and pointed straight at the lavish amount of smoke that was rising into the sky.

"Isn't that close to-"

"Yeah, let's hurry," Sora said. After running (or flying in the case of the Blue Fairy and Gullwings) for about half a minute, the group soon found themselves standing in front of Stephanie and Colette's house. A white and yellow blaze towered above them, spitting out flickers of flame every now and then. Embers flew off in different directions, made visible only by the smoke. Standing more immediately in front of them however was a single person looking directly at them. Even with the flaming building behind him, he seemed unperturbed by this, and Sora could only tell that much from the way he was standing. His face was hidden by a mask and he was wearing a black muscle suit that clung to the definition of his body.

Sora's eyes widened and he shook his head. "No. You can't be… you're dead. Are you…. Vanitas?"

Luna frowned and looked at him. "Vanitas?"

The figure neither confirmed nor denied anything but instead said, "Don't you have more pressing matters to attend to?"

Sora watched as he walked off down the street before turning back to the burning house. Without thinking, Sora ran forwards, unlocked the door with the Kingdom Key and kicked it open. His heart raced as he called out for Stephanie and Colette. After hearing news of Roxas, to also lose those two would be like rubbing salt in his wounds. What was worse was that he could imagine they had been put in danger because of him.

"HELP!"

Sora spun around and went over to the stairs. He had heard the voice coming from the second floor but the flames and smoke obscured his vision. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Luna heading in from the entrance.

"Where are they?"

"Up there. You have water magic, right?" Sora asked.

"It doesn't really work without oxygen in the air," Luna said.

"Damn! Okay…" Sora's eyes flickered around the room for a moment as he pieced together a plan in his head. He soon held out his hand and cast reflect, creating a shield in front of him. "Stay behind me, alright?"

Luna nodded and followed Sora upstairs, the flames parting in front of them as the shield made contact. They soon arrived at the landing of the second floor and immediately saw Stephanie calling out to them from her room. Sora and Luna carefully stepped over the ceiling beam that had fallen from its position, and made their way into the room. Sora managed to dispel his shield just before Stephanie could reach him.

"It's alright, Stephanie. We're going to get you out," Sora soothed while hugging her back. He looked up and saw Colette by the bed. He called out to her but she didn't respond. He looked back at Stephanie. "Is she…"

"No, she's okay!" Luna assured him after checking her pulse.

"Mom, she protected me. A beam came down from the ceiling and she pushed me out of the way and- and-"

"You dragged her into here?" Sora finished for her. Stephanie nodded and looked around just as a loud crash was heard outside the room.

"Alright. We're going to get you out of here. Luna, take hold of Stephanie. I have Colette," Sora instructed. He swapped places with Luna and scooped Colette up into his arms only to set her on the floor. There was something else he needed first.

"Wait! Pooh's storybook!" Stephanie yelled, pointing at her bedside table. Luna rushed over and picked the book up, giving it to Stephanie to carry.

Turning his attention back to his work, Sora quickly stripped Stephanie's bed of its cover and sheets and picked up the mattress. He carried it outside of the room and threw it at the stairs, the flames bursting out around it. He ran back into the room and scooped up Colette before beckoning for Luna to follow. Sora quickly ran back to the stairs and jumped. He sailed forward and felt his behind hit the mattress first followed by the rest of his body. Sora leaned forward and ended back on his feet, twisting just in time so his back hit against the wall of the first landing. He grunted a bit but quickly recovered and went around the corner, reaching the front door.

"Sora, are you okay?" the Blue Fairy asked as he emerged from the burning wreck. Sora looked around to see four unconscious bodies on the ground near her and the Gullwings, probably all Torvald's group. In addition, those from neighbouring houses had left their homes and were bearing witness not just to the flames but Sora and the others too.

"Don't worry about me. Colette's been knocked out," Sora said. He looked back to see Luna and Stephanie emerging too, both coughing and hacking.

"We can't stay here. The fire's attracting too much attention. We need to leave now," Paine said. Sora could only think of one other place they could stay. He just hoped they were still on good terms after leaving without a word.

"Alright, I know a friend who can help. Follow me," Sora said. He turned around to see a young boy staring at him in shock. The man next to him, presumably his father, stared at Sora before his gaze dropped to his arms where Colette was.

He looked back up as if deciding something. "We won't tell anyone."

It wasn't just him either. There seemed to be a resounding nod around them as the neighbours other than the father gave their smiles of approval. Sora couldn't help but smile back at them. Some things really do stay the same.


	7. Fugitives

**A/N: A bit of a lengthy chapter this time round but for me to get in everything I wanted without cutting corners, I thought I might as well give you a something juicy to bite into for a while. Also, a poll has been added to my profile with options for which world you want Sora to visit first. Right now the choice will be between Brave, The Black Cauldron and Middleton(Kim Possible). The poll will likely be up for a good while anyway since I have some plot points I need to lay down before that, but feel free to vote in the meantime.**

* * *

Chapter 6

Fugitives

 ** _Theta District, Radiant Garden_**

Sora lowered his hands from the door as it swung open to reveal a dishevelled girl with a strand of platinum blonde hair sticking up among the rest of the herd. The girl rubbed her eyes and blinked, and then they grew wide as if she had just seen a ghost.

"Did you miss me?" Sora asked with a grin. It soon faded from his face when Jayne abruptly shut the door again, locking them out. Sora turned around to the others and gave an awkward laugh. "Well, that was unexpected."

The door opened once again and Jayne stood in the doorway once again, searching straight into Sora's eyes. She lifted an arm and let it drift forward until her hand rested on Sora's cheek.

"It really is you," Jayne whispered. "Where have you been?"

"There's plenty of time to talk about that but right now we're not exactly welcome here and we have someone and her daughter who need help," Sora said, gesturing towards the Blue Fairy who was carrying Colette in both arms and Stephanie, who was leaning against Luna and rubbing her eyes.

Jayne suddenly burst to life, looking at them both with worried. "Stephanie? And Colette! What happened to them?"

"House burnt down. It was some guy in a mask," Sora told her. Jayne backed up as the Blue Fairy hurried into her home followed by Luna, Stephanie and the Gullwings. Sora remained however, simply staring at the welcome mat in between him and Jayne. "He must have known we were coming. Otherwise, why choose now of all times?"

"It'll be okay, Sora. As you said, you're not safe outside," Jayne said. Sora nodded slowly and stepped into the house. He walked into the living room to see the Blue Fairy and Luna lifting Colette onto the couch.

He heard the door closing behind him and turned to see Jayne peering through the peephole. "You're sure you weren't followed? I really don't want to get in any trouble here."

"No, we definitely weren't, at least I don't think so," Sora said.

"That doesn't inspire much confidence but okay…" Jayne pulled away from the door and turned to Sora, inspecting him closely. "Aw, you're got rid of your hair?"

"What are you talking about? It's still there," Sora replied with furrowed brows.

Jayne shook her head. "That's not what I meant. You got rid of the spikes. Come on, that's like a defining character trait right there."

"I'm sorry, am I not good enough for the hair not to matter?"

"No one remembers the generic hairstyle. It's like expecting the Spanish inquisition. You just don't," Jayne answered.

"I'm… not quite sure what you're getting at there but hey, at least there are still some small spikes. It's not like it can't grow back," Sora said. "Anyway, how do you know Colette and Stephanie?"

"Oh, we've met a few times. About two months ago, some bombings happened around the town and Colette was immediately on the scene willing to help those who were injured. My friend, Naomi, and I kind of volunteered and she asked us to watch over her daughter while she worked at hospital that day. After that, things just kind of hit off," Jayne explained as they walked into the living room. Colette was stirring about, her eyes fluttering open and her head turning slowly to take in the number of people around her.

Sora rushed to her side and knelt down. "You okay?"

"Sora?" she managed to say softly. It took a few seconds for Sora to register what she was saying.

"I'm here. Luna is too," he eventually said.

"Urgh, I have a throbbing headache right now. Where's Stephanie?"

Luna switched places with the nine-year-old who held onto her mother's hand. "Here, mom. You're going to be alright, aren't you?"

"I'd hope so. I'm not ready to go out yet," her mother replied with a slight chuckle. She suddenly jolted upright and looked around. "Fire! Where's the fire?"

"I'm sorry, Colette. Your house was set aflame by an arsonist. Whatever was left, is probably gone by now," answered the Blue Fairy.

"No… but all the photos of Stephanie's father are-"

"It's okay, mom. I still have one." Stephanie held up Pooh's storybook to show her that a corner of what looked like photographic paper was sticking out in the middle of the book. She slid it out to show them and Sora's heart melted instantly. It was the same photo he, Riku and the Gullwings had found after exploring the underground mining shaft in the town a while back. In it was a young girl blowing out the candles of her cake with a beaming mother and grinning father on either side of her. Judging by the number of candles on the cake, Sora would probably have put Stephanie as four at the time the photograph was taken.

"Hey, it's the photo you gave her, isn't it?" Luna asked.

"It is. 'To the person who is reading this, you have seen my most cherished and beloved family. A value worth more than any trinket or munny in the world. This shall be the hardest decision I have ever made and it pains me to do this but I must leave my wife and child for a long journey. If I do not return, please return this photograph to my wife, Colette and my dear daughter, Stephanie. And please protect them. From a loving father. P.S. Small handwriting is not my forte is seems,'" Colette recited looking up at the ceiling.

"You remember that letter on the back word for word? That's something else!" Sora remarked.

"I've read it so many times and always just before bed," Colette told them with a proud grin. The grin faded her face and she winced. "You don't have any aspirin, do you?"

"Um, no… but I do have ibuprofen," Jayne said.

"That'll do. Thanks," Colette replied as Jayne left them to head upstairs.

Suddenly feeling a tinge of regret, Sora said, "Colette, I'm sorry about what happened to your home. It's my fault."

However Colette laughed this off. "Don't be silly, Sora."

"I'm serious though. I can't help but think that the arsonist who burned your house did so because he knew of your connection to me. That also means that somehow, he knew we were here," Sora said. "Otherwise if he didn't, then this incident was way too coincidental for my liking."

"Sora, even if that were true, it's not your fault. It's not any of our faults. We couldn't predict how bad things were here and while we were stuck on the islands, the world around us kept moving, and not for the better," Luna said.

"Yeah, the only one who's at fault here is that stupid coward in the mask!" Rikku snapped, throwing a few punches at the air. "Ooh, I can just imagine that smug grin behind that mask. When we see him again, I'll wipe it off his stupid face."

Luna chuckled. "All in good time, Rikku. Anyway, that was some quick thinking in there, Sora. How did you know the mattress would work?"

"The mattresses here are flame retardant so they don't catch on fire when exposed to it. I remember reading a while back in a newspaper that Xanatos Enterprises solved one of the problems with the fire retardants in mattresses and that there used to be toxins that posed a health risk," Sora said.

"That was brilliant thinking on your part, Sora. I'm impressed!" Luna praised with a bright smile.

Sora grew a bright red and flashed a cheesy grin. "Aw, well, you know… danger often leads to inspiration."

"Huh. I usually find myself panicking around the room when it comes to things like that. Anyway, what happens now? I mean, we need to make contact with Cid, right? But we don't know where he is," Luna said.

Sora rubbed at his right temple with his index finger while looking at the photo and said, "I can hazard a guess. Whilst I'm not entirely confident, it's pretty much all we have to go on."

"Well, I'll trust your instincts since they did help us out back at Colette's house," Luna said.

Sora nodded. "Well they also say lightning never strikes the same place twice but I'll take my chances. The fact is we can't stay here all night. If that guy knew of our connection with Colette then I won't risk Jayne's safety."

"You don't get to decide that."

Sora and the others looked away from Colette and to the stairs where Jayne was standing, her hands grasping the railing tightly. She finally reached the bottom and walked over to them, handing the tablets to Colette and turning to Sora.

"A good few of us here, and I'm not saying it's everyone, but still, it's certainly quite a bit, don't like this new regime, even with the things they've done for us. It's basically fall in line and you'll benefit. The Radiant Garden they're building is for them and if you play by their rules, you'll get a taste of the pie. Still doesn't change the fact it's their pie. And what I can't figure out is that Leon just handed control over to them so easily. I heard that the other guys in the Restoration Committee were against it but Leon insisted. It's why the committee are now classified as insurgents but Leon… well, he's now CEO of Xanatos Enterprises."

Sora's mouth parted in shock. "What did you just say?"

"He replaced Xanatos as acting CEO after handing over control to Torvald. He's not exactly popular with the majority of the town either. To one half, he's the previous ruler of a failed regime built on cover-ups and a lack of integrity. To the other, the insurgents, he's a traitor," Colette explained.

"Squall wouldn't do something like that without a reason. It's just not like him," Sora said. He could think of numerous reasons for Squall's actions, none of them necessarily hinting at free will.

"I agree, but it's hard to convince those who refuse to listen. We humans do have the tendency to blame anything other than ourselves at times and unfortunately it was Squall and the rest of the Restoration Committee in the crossfire this time," Colette said.

Jayne placed a steady hand on Stephanie's shoulder, giving her a smile before looking at Sora. "Anyway, now that you're here I'm going to say this now. I want to help. What's happening to this town now is scary and I don't want me or anyone else I know living it. I'm not going to go about my daily routine deceiving myself into thinking everything's normal because I know it would only hurt in the long run. That's why I've decided, and this was only about a week ago too, I want to help the Restoration Committee."

"Jayne…" Sora murmured. The girl he saw now, once dedicated to becoming an actress, was potentially willing to throw everything away because of her beliefs. He had watched her struggle, listened to her frustrations first hand, and seen it all come to fruition on the stage that Saturday night over three months ago. Could she really abandon all of that at the drop of a hat? Maybe, but Sora wasn't prepared to see her do that. "I'm sorry, but no. Giving up all your ambitions like that is pointless."

"How can you say that?"

"Because there's always a way. That's what my friend, Aqua, likes to say. You can help the Restoration Committee while at the same time keeping your own life. All you need to do is keep doing what you did when I last saw you. Just act and be happy. In dark moments like this, people always look to the closest source of light available to comfort them. You can be their light. Their happiness. The theatre exists so people can forget the outside world for a while, right? Then help them to forget. That's a power you have that I don't," Sora said.

He walked over to Jayne and took hold of her right hand with both of his own, giving it a squeeze. Jayne smiled at him and let out a light chuckle.

"You know, I've been told a lot of things about my acting over the years, some negative, some positive, and I've taken it all to heart and it's made me a better person for it. What you just said may be the sweetest thing I've ever heard. Rather than trying something else entirely, I should make the most out of the strengths I already have. I agree. Thank you, Sora."

"Hey, I'm just glad I could change your mind," Sora said with a look of relief that made Jayne giggle.

"But my talents are still needed," Colette said with a lot more strength than usual. Sora let go off Jayne's hands and looked over to the mother who had just finished downing the rest of the water Jayne had also fetched for her. "I want to come with you to check on Cid and the others. I worry for them, especially if they're not anywhere that has immediate access to medical help."

"Again, I really don't think that's a good idea-"

"I've lost my house. As far as I know, Steph and I are already in danger," Colette replied.

"Sora, I think if Colette wants to help, we shouldn't stop her. It might be dangerous but we can't deny the world we live in. If Colette feels the best place she can be is with the Restoration Committee then I support her in that," Luna argued in a dulcet tone.

Sora seemed dissatisfied by this but reluctantly nodded the go ahead. Colette was like a tornado anyway. Once her path was set, it was pretty impossible to convince her otherwise to tread it.

"Alright, then we need to get moving again. Blue Fairy, ma'am, do you think you could teleport us to just near the castle gates?" Sora asked.

"So… near the entrance to the castle roof? I should be able to do that but-"

"I think the secret passageway we're looking for is around there. I just hope there aren't too many people out on patrol in that area," Sora said.

"I'll check to make sure our path is clear. Be back in a moment," the fairy announced and disappeared before their eyes, leaving flickering gleams of light like stars behind until they too disappeared.

After a few minutes, the Blue Fairy reappeared and smiled. "Other than the gates, the area is completely clear. I'm hoping your secret passageway isn't near the gate."

"I think we'll be able to make do. Besides, if all else fails there's always running, right?" Sora jested.

"If we even get a chance to run," Luna replied sceptically.

"Optimism is essential to a healthy lifestyle. That said, your chances would indeed be quite slim," the Blue Fairy added with a beam on her face.

"Er- okay, thanks for that, I guess…" Sora grumbled. "Anyway, it's time we get going. Jayne, I know it's only been a few minutes but we have to get going again. It's not safe for us to stop for too long at one place, if that makes sense."

"I'll see you again?" Jayne asked.

"Count on it. I'm going to do my best to get rid of Torvald's guys, but I need Neuge, Riku and everyone else first," Sora said.

"Jayne, could I ask you a favor? I want you to take care of Steph for a while-"

"No!"

The answer did not come from Jayne but a rather serious Stephanie, who had her hands clenched into tiny balls.

"I'm not going to lose you like I lost dad. I won't let you do this by yourself. We're supposed to be a family, aren't we?" Stephanie cried.

"Well, yes, but-"

"Then no buts. I wanted to cry when you protected me from the part of the roof ceiling that fell on you. I thought I had lost you like dad but you're still alive. Now you want to leave me again?" Stephanie asked.

"It won't be for long, Stephanie. I know we're family and I know that means sticking together, but this is different. We're at war. I want to build a future that you deserve and for me to do that means I have to help in any way I can. I'm sorry Steph, but I can't get you involved," Colette said.

Stephanie looked away for a moment. When her eyes returned to her mother they were wet as she struggled to hold back tears.

"I thought we were a team. That's what you said."

Colette smiled and pulled Stephanie in for a hug. "And we always will be, sweetheart. But not this time."

There was a brief silence in which Sora thought that Stephanie was searching for a retort, but instead he heard a whisper over soft sobs. "You'll be back soon, right?"

"As soon as I can," Colette soothed.

* * *

 ** _Outside the Castle Gates, Radiant G_** ** _arden_**

Sora pulled open the manhole that he had opened up about almost a year ago and watched as the others jumped down, staying till last to help Colette. The interior of the mineshaft hadn't changed since Sora had last been here. Here, he took the lead and slipped through the narrow crevice that led to the depths of the cave.

"Sora, are you sure they're down here. I just can't see it…" Luna said, as she emerged after him. Yuna, Rikku and Paine flew in easily right after her. Sora had completely forgotten how easy it was for the three pixies to get through last time as it was now.

"It's the only place I can think of. Riku and I came here about a year ago and we were so excited when we found it. It was just like when we were kids, exploring the secret place for the first time. Anyway, at the end there's a graveyard or something that looks like one. I think if we keep going in that direction, we'll find them for sure."

The one thing Sora forgot to mention however as they continued on their way to their destination was just how long the cave went on. After walking for what was probably just under an hour, Colette let out a loud groan.

"Please tell me that if I have to leave, I won't be coming back this way. Truth be told, I probably wouldn't have come if I had known it was this far," Colette said.

"Yeah… how much longer, Sora?" Luna enquired, slurring her words whether she realized it or not.

"Um, sorry guys, but we're almost there. For real this time!" Sora promised with fake gusto. True to his word, they soon heard the murmurs of many people nearby. As they came across the first of many, people stopped and stared in shock or even admiration as Sora and Luna passed by them. Sora tried his best to ignore their staring but soon the few passers-by soon gave way to an open community full of people bustling in different directions, all until they spotted the two Keyblade wielders that is.

Noticing the abundance of depleting voices, Aerith who was carrying a bucket, turned in the same direction everyone else was looking and immediately dropped it, the water spilling onto the ground.

"Sora! Oh my… Cid! Yuffie! Over here!" Aerith called as loud as she could. There was some scurrying among the audience. Sora chuckled particularly when he heard a gruff voice say _"the heck outta the way!"_

Cid and Yuffie soon emerged in front of them, both with wide grins on their faces at the sight of the group. Sora's smile fell short at the sight of Cid however. He was being supported by two crutches, both of which he gripped onto tightly. His right leg was bent at an angle and his foot was wrapped in bandages, pointing downwards like a straight arrow but never touching the ground, forming a perfect isosceles triangle in between both legs.

"Well, look who it is. Figured you two decided to abandon us and start your careers as magicians. That was some disappearing act you pulled there," Yuffie remarked.

"And like true magicians, I suppose the secret's ours to keep. Anyway, what happened to your foot, Cid?" Sora asked.

"A bit of trouble with our new rulers. A few of them were harassing some kid on the street. I couldn't let it stand and well… let's just say now I can't stand," Cid said with a chuckle. "Don't worry about me. It was just a minor fracture. I'd say about another week or two and it'll be right as rain."

"I'll be the judge of that," Colette said, indicating her presence to the tech wizard. Cid let out an audible gulp.

"Well, if all it is a l. So, the fact that you're here means you knew about this place then?" Sora asked.

"Yeah, thanks to Cloud. It's a pretty favorable place and I don't think too many people apart from you guys would be willing to look for it. Unfortunately Cloud couldn't join us. He decided to do his own thing and left. That kid never was a fan of staying indoors too much," Cid said.

"So where is he now? And Tifa and Rinoa, for that matter?" Luna asked.

"Cloud? I have no idea. Not in Radiant Garden anymore, I can tell you that much. Last I heard from him, he said he was going out to find help. That was two months ago. Hope he's alright. As for Tifa, she's probably working up a sweat in her room as we speak."

Sora looked around to see multiple tents surrounding the outer layer of the giant room. So, the underground of Radiant Garden had effectively become a camp for those who refused Torvald's rule and judging not just by the camps but by the crowd of people in front of him, there were quite a few of them.

"And Rinoa?" Luna asked.

Cid looked uneasily over at the Yuffie who backed away slightly before turning around and said, "Best we talk about this somewhere more private."

Sora felt Luna's gaze rest on him from the corner of his eye. He briefly nodded to register it before following Yuffie, Cid and Aerith. Everyone around them soon returned to their previous activities, evoking a sense of relief from Sora. He would much rather prefer to be ignored than stared at like an idol.

The group soon reached a tent that looked more to be of military surplus standard compared to the smaller ones behind them. Other than a few beds, the only other equipment seemed to be a small vintage radio set on top of a desk along with four walkie-talkies, presumably for each Restoration Committee member.

The sound of heavy slamming stopped and Tifa pulled her fist away from the punching bag in the corner of the room before turning to look at them.

"Sora! Luna! You're back! And Colette, I didn't expect to see you here."

"I wanted to help any way I could. I'm just glad you're alright," Colette answered.

Tifa nodded and scanned the group from left to right as if expecting someone else. "Where's Stephanie?"

"I couldn't get her involved. She's with someone else I know."

"Probably for the best. Hope she didn't give you too much trouble," Tifa said. She was about to return to the punching bag when Sora spoke out.

"Someone burnt her house down."

"You've got to be kidding, right?" Yuffie asked in disbelief. Cid, Aerith and Tifa also had similar expressions of shock on their faces.

"Was it Torvald's folk?" Cid asked.

Sora shook his head. "No idea. It was some guy in a mask. Somehow I get the feeling that he was acting on his own though."

"Either way, it's horrible. Colette, I'm so sorry. While you and your daughter are still alive, I do hope nothing of too much value was taken from you," Aerith said with eyes full of sorrow.

"It's alright, really, but thank you, Aerith. It's all material at the end of the day. I'm just glad Stephanie was alright," Colette assured her.

"Just one more thing we'll have to set right by the end of this. HYAAH!" Tifa jumped back and threw a kick, knocking the punch bag away from her with such force that it caused everyone else to jump.

"So… where exactly is Rinoa?" Luna asked.

"One day she just mysteriously disappeared. No note, no mention beforehand, nothing. We think she might have been kidnapped by Torvald," Aerith said.

"It would explain why Leon didn't tell us anything," Yuffie added.

"You mean about handing the town over to Torvald? Could you expand on that a bit? What exactly happened?" Colette asked.

"You know, we're still not entirely sure ourselves. One day, several explosions went off around the town. There was also a hostage situation at Xanatos Enterprises, led by Irva Torvald's guys as you'd expect. The strange thing about the situation was that we received no demands at all from them," Yuffie started.

"Maybe they were trying to prove some kind of point? Like, we can shut down an entire town with the force we have so don't try anything funny?" Sora suggested.

"Maybe. Either way, our priority was the immediate rescue of the hostages. We planned to infiltrate the tower with me by myself as one team using one route to enter the building and Tifa with a group infiltrating from another more ostensive route. I was supposed to go ahead of the others and scout the building out. It was a pretty meticulous plan but before we could put it to action, the hostages and their kidnappers suddenly emerged from the building, Squall along with them. I thought it strange that we hadn't seen him all morning and that he hadn't even come to the meeting to discuss the hostage takers. Then a few minutes later, the announcement suddenly came, none of it even discussed with us. Leon just went on stage and declared that 'we, the Committee, have failed the people of Radiant Garden too many times. As such, fresh change is needed', just to paraphrase," Yuffie said, mimicking Squall's voice.

"Yes, it didn't make sense at the time. But I've never lost faith in Squall. Rinoa's disappearance coinciding with those events only serves to strengthen that faith. He wouldn't betray us. He was most like threatened. If you don't give up authority, Rinoa… well, you understand," Aerith said. "They probably also threatened him to keep quiet about it, which is why he never told us."

Sora lowered his head to mask him gritting his teeth. The real problem was knowing that he was ultimately powerless to do anything about this. If he had a death wish, he could oh so easily march up to Torvald and reveal himself, but even if he managed to be Torvald, there were still the others to contend with. Knowing that he could only bide his time until the day Radiant Garden would be free again was the thing that ached the most.

"But enough about us. I'm glad you got in contact with us otherwise I don't know how we would have been able to tell you this. We think Riku might be in trouble," Aerith told them, looking more so at Sora than the rest.

 _And the hits just keep coming_ , Sora thought, taking a moment to run his hands through his hair before looking up.

"What do you mean?" he asked in a steeled voice.

"Well, it's been over two months since we came into contact with him. Not just him, but Xion too. The last we heard from him, he was escorting Belle back to Prince Adam's castle. I can't help but get the feeling something bad has happened to them. I know it's just a feeling but they usually turn out to be right."

"I'll hope for the exception," Sora said. "Anyway, is there a plan of some sort for taking back the town?"

"We've come up with things using some of the schematics we found in Ansem's library. The problem is we don't have the necessary manpower to pull these off and I don't want to put these people in danger. They all have normal lives to go back to after this is all over. Fighting and dying to not see that is pointless," Cid said. "So right now, the parents are left to fend for their children and the orphans whose parents didn't survive last time around. Can you imagine that? Some of them are only ten, twelve years old? They only got to see the Radiant Garden as we knew it ten years ago for a short while and now they're being taken from that. No, we built it into something even better. Maybe that vision was built with dirty money, of course, we didn't know at the time but… even if not perfect, it was still ours and it was our duty to remedy those imperfections. Now we can't even do that."

Luna shook her head vigorously. "No. You will. We'll find everyone, and then we're coming back. We'll take back Radiant Garden. We'll save Squall and Rinoa. For now though, you have to be their leader Cid. Teach them. Help them."

"Leader? Pfft. I can't say I know nothing about leading. That said, not like I have a choice either. This world is ours dammit and we're not giving it up this time!" Cid snarled, driving his right crutch into the ground. A barely visible imprint remained when he lifted the crutch's tip from the point of impact.

"That's the spirit, gramps!" Luna teased, elbowing him playfully on his right arm.

"Hey, watch who you call gramps! I'm not that old." Cid retorted. Luna stuck her tongue out at him before looking back to Sora. "So what's the plan for us?"

"Well, since Kairi's doing something on her own, I think she'll be okay. For now, we need to find Riku and Xion so… off to Prince Adam's castle then?"

The Blue Fairy waved her wand about in a fluttery motion and said, "Then if I may suggest something. Cid, do you have any Gummi Ships left?"

"Well, yeah… not like I can access them though. The Hangar's being held under surveillance by those asshole Keyblade wielders. No offence," Cid said.

"None taken," Sora said. "But is there a reason, ma'am?"

"A fairy is always yearning for time. Why, tomorrow I have an appointment with King Triton. Big things are happening."

"That's an understatement. King Triton, huh? Say hi to Ariel for me if you can," Sora said.

"Of course. But you understand? Since I won't always be able to be with you, I think it best we acquire some method of transportation for you. Slower than magic, but it'll have to do," the Blue Fairy said.

"See, Sora? If only you had actually taken the time to learn how to do that corridor of light thing like Riku can do, we would be able to get around faster," Luna pointed out.

"Sue me. Besides, with Donald and Goofy travelling with and then you, it didn't really feel necessary when we had the Gummi Ship," Sora replied. "Besides, you can't tell me you wouldn't rather travel by air. I know how you work."

"Excuse me!"

At this sweet sound, Sora and Luna turned their gazes toward Aerith who stepped forward with a proud smile on her face. "I think I know a way you can get to the hangar."

* * *

 ** _Outside the Ruins of Villain's Vale, Radiant Garden_**

Sora could almost recreate the feeling of discovery second by second as he opened the manhole cover to reach Maleficent's old castle, or what should have been her castle anyway. Perhaps the reason his surprise resonated with him as much as it had a year ago was because of the condition of the building. The building had completed disappeared, leaving only stone and brickwork in its wake.

What had once been a twisted malignant reminder of a dark past for the town, a tumor that had bloated an already devastated landscape, was now a pile of smithereens. Sora would have laughed if the others hadn't been nearby to hear him. It was fascinating how something so sinister could be taken down so easily. It seemed unreal, like he was living in some alternate version of the world he knew.

"Was this done by Torvald's men?" Luna asked from behind him. Sora couldn't imagine any other possibility. He wondered if this was their way of cutting off the ties to the past, the sins that had plagued Radiant Garden perpetuated by the proclaimed manipulations of Ansem the Wise, the darkness brought by Maleficent, and the cover-ups of the Restoration Committee. Or maybe its repulsive aesthetics were simply looked upon in disgust. Either way, it symbolized a new era for Radiant Garden for sure. But they were sadly mistaken if they thought it was an era they would be a part of.

"Sora, are you listening?"

Sora snapped out of his thoughts and turned to Tifa who showed a look of concern on her face. She had volunteered to escort them to the Gummi Hangar after Aerith had suggested they use the manhole to reach Villain's Vale. They would then use the rope that Tifa had brought along to scale up a certain mountain and arrive right behind the Gummi Hangar. They had already said their goodbyes to the others, with Colette staying behind to help. Sora hoped that it would not be long before he could see them again.

"Sorry. It's just weird not to see something that's always been there before. Anyway, let's keep moving," Sora said. After travelling around for a few minutes, they eventually reached the destination Aerith had pointed out for them. Tifa knelt down and set about with the preparations, tying a knot with the rope around the grappling hook she'd also been given.

"I'm going to throw this up there. Miss Blue Fairy, do you think you could teleport up there and attach it to something sturdy for me?" Tifa asked.

The Blue Fairy chuckled. "Miss… I quite like the sound of that. You know, I've always wanted to be a teacher and-"

"That's fine and dandy but let's not get distracted from what we came here to do," Tifa said. The Blue Fairy looked a little disappointed by Tifa's lack of interest but put on her best smile soon after and nodded before teleporting up to the top.

"I'm ready," called the Blue Fairy. Tifa nodded and spun the grappling hook in circles before throwing it upwards with as much force as she could muster. The Blue Fairy managed to grab the hook before it could slip away from her and disappeared from the edge of the mountain for a few seconds, returning thereafter to alert them to her success.

"Alright, Luna, you're probably lightest so you go first," Tifa said.

"Um, have I ever mentioned I'm not too good with heights? I mean, I've climbed a fair few things while I was in the realm of darkness and I really don't have a choice in the matter do I?" Luna said really quickly. She had a habit of talking really quickly when she was nervous, something Sora found both hilarious and cute.

"Well, think of it like walking upwards instead of forwards-"

"Oh, it is not like that at all!" Luna snapped.

Tifa beamed. "You're right. Hmm, well, just don't look down then."

"Come on, Luna. Time to put Phil and Neuge's training to good use," Sora said.

"Fine… but you'll catch me if I fall, won't you?" Luna asked.

Sora scratched at his chin. "I'll consider it."

Luna chuckled at this and turned her attention to the thick rope. Griping it tightly with both hands, she backed away a bit before swinging forward and planting her feet on the mountain. Sora could hear murmurs of "Don'tlookdowndon'tlookdown" over and over again as she climbed upwards.

"So what's the story with you and Luna?" Tifa asked as he watched Luna ascended higher up the mountain.

Sora took his eyes off her and looked at Tifa questioningly before realizing what she meant. "Oh. Yeah, well things kind of hit off between us the last time we were here. I was pretty clumsy at first when it came to it but Luna helped out and we just went from there. I'm lucky to have her. Heck, I'm even lucky to have met her in the first place. And to think, it all started when she fell on top of me back in Traverse Town."

"That's one way of meeting your girlfriend. Well, I'm happy for you. She deserves it after everything that's happened to her," Tifa said.

"Yeah, I agree. She's certainly made me happy so I want to return the favor. And you, Tifa? How are you and Cloud doing?" Sora asked.

Tifa shot Sora a look as if he had grown two heads and quickly looked away. "I'm sorry, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Of course you don't. But just remember that guys like Cloud don't exactly catch on to the obvious. If you're expecting him to act first, don't," Sora advised.

"Hmm, maybe you're right," Tifa said. Sora grinned and looked back up to the mountain to see the Blue Fairy helping Luna up as she reached the last few hurdles of her climb. "You're next, Sora."

Sora nodded and repeated the same motions as Luna, gathering enough momentum to launch himself off the ground. Planting his feet firmly against the mountain's surface, he began hoisting himself upward. By the time he reached the top, both his arms were aching. He caught sight briefly of the lamp post with which the grappling hook was attached around, but he paid it little else attention.

The group waited for Tifa to re-join with them before continuing onwards. The walk was a short three minutes and before Sora knew it, he was facing the back of the side of the Gummi Ship Hangar. Sora craned his neck slightly to the side to search the area, but any trace of life eluded him.

Sora summoned Oblivion and cut a hole through the barbed wire fence, allowing them to slip in under night's cover.

As they entered the Hangar, Sora could immediately tell that something was not right. It probably didn't take a genius to figure out that the Hangar was too quiet, and very much lacking in security. His eyes set sight on the several gates lined in up a row that led to separate Gummi Ships. Only two remained, one in Gate 3 nearby and the other in Gate 9, the latter immediately catching his attention as being the first Gummi Ship he had ever travelled on. Compared to later models, it may have seemed inferior what with its simple red and yellow motif but to Sora it was a personal reminder of his first few journeys.

"So which one should we go for?" Luna asked.

"You'll be going for neither."

The group spun around to see three armored figures approaching them arranged in a triangle formation. The one in front seemed more important than the other two judging by his gold armor plates in contrast to their silver ones.

"You're with Irva Torvald?" Sora asked.

"Hold your tongue, fool. You are speaking to General Sabbat of the Hauteclaire Division!" a furious female's voice came out of the armored figure on the left behind Sabbat. Her anger seemed reside when Sabbat held up a swift hand before looking back to Sora.

"And what of it?"

Luna stepped forward and yelled, "Why are you doing this?"

"That's hardly your concern given you won't live long enough for an answer to matter," the man replied. He looked over to Tifa and extended a hand forward. "And to what do we owe the pleasure of this visit? Are you ready to finally admit your surrender? To be quite honest, the Garden could still use your talents. Let us work together and restore peace to these once civil streets."

"Don't you dare talk like you knew what this town once was. We were perfectly fine without you and we'll be perfectly fine after you're long gone and buried," Tifa said, driving a fist into her palm.

Sabbat let out a lasting sigh that seemed to bleed in to the factory noises around the building. "Alas, the people may be of a different opinion. Very well, if you will not be penitent to your failures, Horus has no need of you any longer."

"Horu-" The word was barely out of Sora's mouth before a wave of energy was unleashed forward. Tifa jumped in Sora's way and crossed her wrists, the energy smashing into her with so much force that Sora's legs suddenly felt wobbly. The wave of energy soon became too much for Tifa to handle and she was blown back, taking Sora along with her to the floor.

"Sora! Tifa!" Luna yelled, she was about to run over to them when the Blue Fairy stopped her.

"No. You mustn't lose focus. One small mistake and I fear it may be your last," the Blue Fairy said. Luna nodded and summoned Dream Seeker before transforming it into Artemis' bow. She fired off a few arrows, all of which were deflected by Sabbat and the other soldiers as they approached. Luna quickly changed her Keyblade back to its original state and locked blades with Sabbat. Sabbat lifted his Keyblade off of Luna's and then back down again, repeating the process with slow, methodical but heavy strikes that kept Luna on the defensive. His height made it so that Luna was always blocking his vertical swings from above, exposing the rest of her body to any attack.

He lifted his Keyblade away but instead of bringing it back down, used his elbow thrust it into Luna's chest, causing her to lose her balance. About to make his first horizontal strike, a beam of light from the Blue Fairy's wand connected with his arm and knocked him backwards. Luna quickly regained her balance and swung, her Keyblade tearing into Sabbat's torso area.

Meanwhile, Tifa was fending off the female armored figure and Sora was taking on the one who had remained silent throughout. Sora's eyes quickly scanned his surroundings and he began to put a plan into motion. Sora didn't attempt to parry his adversary's attacks but rather sidestepped out of their way. He made sure he was close to the wall where some of the pipes were running and cut through them, quickly jumping out of the way. Steam poured and engulfed his opponent, who was forced to retreat as quickly as possible.

The figure spun around in all directions, unable to see due to the hot blast. Sora got in from behind and struck as quickly as possible, slashing up, down, left, right… everywhere he could until he discovered the secret. Upon striking that pauldron on their left shoulder, the armor shattered completely, revealing a startled man.

"What the hell? Bah, this isn't worth my life!" He cried before booking it fast for the exit. Did he really have that little confidence without his armor? A certain sitar-wielding individual popped into Sora's head. He shrugged it off and turned his attention to Luna and the Blue Fairy who were fending off Sabbat. He was about to run in to help then when his eyes fell on the Gummi Ship instead.

Tifa slid around behind her opponent and delivered several fast blows, aiming more so at forcing the woman back with her palms rather than delivering blows she knew could end up hurting her fists in the long run. Many years of experience and training made her the vastly superior fighter of the two, her speed almost unparalleled to any in the room. Tifa jumped high and delivered a well-aimed kick to the helmet. The woman was unable to block in time and was sent almost tripping in the opposite direction.

Not allowing her out of arm's length, Tifa landed back on the ground and began to glow a bright aura.

"Time to break the limit!" Tifa said. She raced forward and performed her Final Heaven move. She struck at the woman in five different directions like a trail of light before reappearing and unleashing a massive blast of energy with her fist that shattered the woman's armor and sent her flying into a wall. "Couldn't keep up with the beat, could you?"

"LUNA, GET DOWN!"

Tifa turned to see the Gummi Ship from Gate 3 firing off several Thunder-G shots. Luna did as she was told. That said, the weapon hadn't been aiming for her or Sabbat. Sora wasn't so careless or stupid to do that. He instead aimed for the roof directly above Sabbat. The general tried to move but a quick stun from the Blue Fairy's wand prevented him from doing so and he was crushed by the falling debris of the roof.

"In other news today, the enemy forces suffered a rather crushing defeat," Sora joked through the Gummi Ship's headset.

"Sora, ignoring the pun, I honestly think I love you right now," Luna declared through some breathiness.

"Ow! How do you feel the other times then?" Sora's voice oozed mock offence, causing Luna to laugh.

"You two need to get going before more show up. I can't stay here for long either," Tifa said.

"Are you heading back to the hideout now, Tifa?" Luna asked.

"Yeah, but first I'm gonna bring that one along with me," Tifa said, pointing towards the unconscious woman she had fought with. "Maybe she can tell us about Torvald's plans. Of course, I'm sure she'll need a lot of convincing."

"You really love using those fists of yours, don't you?"

Tifa grinned at Luna. "Well, these fists were made for punching."

"Ha-ha-ha, I'll take your word for it. Alright, see you hopefully soonish I guess. Thanks for coming with us," Luna said, starting on her way towards the Gummi Ship along with the Blue Fairy.

Tifa saw them off with a smile before turning to the unconscious woman. "Just telling you now that my punching bag is starting to wear out."

* * *

 **A/N: Something I was really interested in while reading about the backstory for the restoration committee was that Cid was the one who rescued them prior to their world's destruction. Expect to delve deeper into Cid's father-like relationship with the others (particularly Squall) as the story continues. Anyway, next time, Sora and Luna will start their search for Riku and Xion. Until then, thanks for reading!**


	8. To Be Human Again

**A/N: Another chapter has arrived for your pleasure and this time Sora and Luna are exploring the world of Beauty and the Beast in search of Riku and Xion. Not really much else to say here except if you haven't yet, be sure to vote in the profile poll about which world you want to see Sora go to first. Since I've never done a poll before I was acting like a giddy school child trying to set up and I honestly don't even know if it works. Do be sure to tell me if you can see it though.**

* * *

Chapter 7

To Be Human Again

 ** _Gummi Ship Hangar, Radiant Garden_**

Irva Torvald surveyed the Gummi Ship Hangar with a hint of amusement on his lips. In front of him was the area of the roof that had been brought down by Sora. Further to his right, a burst pipe spilled forth hot steam, increasing the temperature of the room. His eyes reverted back to the pile of rubble as an armored hand broke out from beneath.

"Help him," Torvald said to his subordinates. A few of them rushed over and began clearing the rubble, allowing General Sabbat to emerge from its entrapment. He was a middle aged man, with gray hairs prevalent among his otherwise curly black. He let out a violent cough and deactivated his armor.

"My apologies, sir. I failed to capture Sora and that woman from the Restoration Committee," Sabbat said, having recovered from his coughing fit.

"You only brought two others with you?" Torvald asked.

"I thought three of us were enough to handle a couple of children-"

"Then you were wrong," Torvald cut in sharply. "Sora and his friends are not to be underestimated and you'll do sure to remember that. I will not allow for second mistakes, especially not where our agency is put under jeopardy due to faulty judgements."

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. I promise you I will not fall folly to my own hubris again," Sabbat said.

"I would certainly hope so, my friend. But enough talk of tonight's events. Lieutenant Caster finally received intelligence on the group of Keyblade wielders responsible for attacking our convoy in DunBroch. They're a group of self-proclaimed protectors of the realm. Moira's Crescent is their name."

"Moira's Crescent…" Sabbat repeated in thought.

"Do you know them?"

"No, it's an interesting name is all. Do you think it's only a matter of time before they try to attack us directly?"

"Given enough time, I believe so. You understand then, what must come of them?" Torvald asked.

"Destroyed?"

"Yes. Caster also managed to find their whereabouts so no problem there. Go with Caster. Bring an army if you have to…" Torvald stepped up to Sabbat until the latter was forced to look into the former's eyes. "And wipe every last one of them out."

"As you wish, sir." Sabbat bowed. He tried to move around Torvald but he found himself stopped by a firm grip on his shoulder.

"For your sake, I'd hope my faith in you is not misplaced," Torvald said before letting go off him.

"I assure you, sir. It is not," Sabbat said. With that, he turned and left.

* * *

 ** _Prince Adam's Castle, North Eastern France_**

Sora and Luna were glad to know that, regardless of the fact that the worlds were separated now only by sea and borders of land, the co-ordinates still led to the same places. Such was the case, they discovered as soon as they reached the outskirts of the castle belonging to Belle, Prince Adam and his rather colorful bunch of servants. The Blue Fairy, before she left to meet with Triton, had suggested a pretty sound theory to explain this:

"Maybe the co-ordinates were the same when the world broke up into many worlds, so it's just the spaces in between them that were erased."

Whatever the case, Sora was at least glad to know he could count on the co-ordinates already entered into the system to get them to where they needed to go.

"They have the co-ordinates of Shibuya entered in, right?" Luna asked after Sora had the engines turned off.

"Of course. I guess Yen Sid had them find it or something. Unfortunately, we're going to have to put our reunion off for now. Time to see how the prince is doing," Sora said.

"I've never seen the prince before. So, you knew him as Beast when you last saw him, right?" Luna asked.

"Yeah, there was an enchantment put on the prince and all the servants in the castle that turned them into other things. It was because he was pretty self-centered that he was cursed by the way. Anyway, the enchantress set a condition that if he could learn to love and be loved in return by the time the last petal fell from his rose, everything would go back to normal. Then the rest, you already know. He found Belle and they fell in love," Sora explained.

"Sounds like something your parents tell you when you're younger. Kind of like saying, if you stay up late at night, the Bogeyman's going to come out from under your bed and gobble you up or something. I always thought that was a weird thing to do. Isn't saying that more likely to mentally scar a child than help?" Luna considered aloud.

"I don't know about that. Sometimes kids need to be scared in order to learn. I mean, you ever been told not to play fire?" Sora asked.

"I don't really know if that's comparable," Luna said with a frown.

"You sure? It follows the same principle, right? Do not do this because if you do, such and such will happen. If I said that a fire demon will rise from the flames and hurt you, wouldn't that not be the same thing?" Sora asked.

"Well, either way, kids don't really learn by you just telling them. I mean, I think the more you're told something, the more you want to do it. It's just human nature," Luna said.

"Doesn't mean you shouldn't tell them. If they still do it, it just gives you bragging rights to say I told you so," Sora said. "But, going back to your original point, I can see what you mean. It is a bit different when it actually happens. Plus, he was just a child when it happened, if I remember correctly. There are a lot of kids who are like him so he was kind of dealt an unfair hand. Who knows if he would have eventually grown out of it without having to be turned into a beast. While I can't agree with what the enchantress did, what's done is done and at least Adam got his happy ending."

"Yeah, I'm glad for him and Belle. You know, seeing as how we're visiting a castle, I kind of wanted to wear something a bit extravagant but then I thought maybe that's too much," Luna said.

"Probably for the best. Anyway, let's go," Sora said, opening up the cockpit doors to the fresh woodland air. Their entire journey had taken them across the night sky well through the early morning and into the afternoon. It felt strange to be able to open the door of the Gummi Ship mid-flight and see the glistening waters below. Luna even had Sora slow the Gummi Ship down and fly at low altitude just so she could dip her toes in the water. They both could certainly get used to it. Of course, the blanket of darkness from above was still a concern. No matter where they went, they saw not a single star in sight.

Autumn made its presence clear as red, yellow, magenta, brown and orange leaves all fell from their shrubs onto the forest floor. Sora grinned as he watched Luna take enjoyment in the crunching of the leaves underneath her feet.

It was hard to believe but back on the islands, Sora had never really known Fall, Spring or even Winter in the traditional sense. The leaves on the trees never changed color and besides the slight drop in temperature and big waves that came in, there wasn't much else to indicate winter. Sora could remember how excited and giddy he was when he experienced his first look at snow in Christmas Town. That's why he could relate to Luna so much right now.

After explaining as much to Luna, she responded with a grin, "You've been missing out. We get plenty of snow in the winter in Alexander. It's especially beautiful in the Ice Rink near the palace. There's just this flurry of snow that covers the entire town. I had a secret place of my own, a hill that overlooked the town where I used to watch the stars. When you stand there a look at the town, it just glistens in the sunlight. It's really beautiful. The season's almost here so I'll take you to see it some time. I want to see how Celes and the King and Queen are doing as well so it's killing two birds with one stone."

"I'm looking forward to it," Sora replied. When she spoke of the hill it did not come as a surprise to him. He had been there after all. He had once delved into her heart and had spoken with her younger self. At least, he thought he did. Whether he had somehow travelled through time to meet her or whether it had all been in his head, he had no idea. He had thought of bringing it up with Luna a few times but he was never able to go through with it, probably because it seemed ridiculous to propose in the first place.

They soon arrived at the castle's gates, left open and inviting to anyone who wished to visit the prince. If Sora recalled correctly, the only time the gates ever closed was during the night now, a departure from his times as the Beast when it had always been closed.

As soon as they passed the gates, they were greeted by a white stoned arch bridge that travelled over what looked like a thick fog at first but if one were to focus more closely they would be able to make out the tops of the pine trees that stretched out in vast supply until they reached the mountains behind the castle.

Sora allowed Luna some time to admire everything and once she was ready, they moved on into the courtyard. Arriving at the door, Sora rapped on the door with the back of his hand.

"This place is amazing. Would you want to live in a place like this, Sora?" Luna asked as she stood back to admire the details.

"Out in the middle of nowhere? No thanks. I know you'd probably have servants but seeing the same old faces would probably get lonely. The last time I came here, the prince even offered some of his empty rooms to the homeless he came across in the village nearby. While I don't doubt that he was doing it out of the kindness of his own heart, I'm sure meeting new faces was also a part of it."

"Yeah, I can agree with that. I'm the kind of girl who prefers things a little quiet but even I'd probably get bored eventually," Luna said.

The door soon opened to reveal a lanky man with auburn hair tied back in a ponytail and a long pointy nose.

"Why if it isn't Sora! And who is the lovely mademoiselle by your side, if I may be so bold as to enquire?" he asked in a sultry tone.

"Luna, it's nice to meet you. Sorry, what's your name?"

"For them, Lumière. For you, anything, ma chérie-AAAH!" Lumière screamed like a girl as he was dragged back into the castle and out of sight by a brown haired woman in maid attire holding a feather duster.

"That's enough out you, you- you- PERVERT!" she screamed.

"Babette, I was only kidding. You know you're the only one for me!"

Luna let out an awkward laugh. "Ha, I kind of feel sorry for him. Looks like he's going to get it now."

"Don't be. Anyway, let's go and see how the prince is doing," Sora said. They slipped through the door and into the entrance hall to an extravagant and well-crafted interior. It did not take them long to find Prince Adam as he was standing on the stairs talking with a plump man slightly on the short side with curly brown hair and a fine moustache. Sora looked past them to see Belle walking along the stairway. Her eyes travelled in search of the prince and Cogsworth only to settle on Sora and Luna instead in surprise.

"Sora! Luna!" she called, alerting Adam and Cogsworth to their presence.

"Belle, I'm glad you're alright. You came here with Riku and Xion, right?" Luna asked.

"I did but…" Belle looked down at her hands for a moment before replying. "I don't know where they are now. You haven't found them, have you?"

"No. That's why we came here actually. We heard that this was the last place they were spotted," Sora said.

Adam joined Sora at the bottom of the stairs and placed a hand on Sora's shoulder. "You'll find them eventually, Sora. Riku's tough. But of course, you already know that."

"Yeah. Still, it hasn't been that long since we left the islands and it already feels like so much has changed. Belle, when was the last time you saw them?" Sora asked.

"It was when my village was attacked by a group of Keyblade wielders, which was over a month and half ago, I'd say. At my request, we decided to go to the cemetery where my mother had been buried. After that, we returned to the village to find that it had come under occupation. People were fleeing for their lives and the attackers were indiscriminate in who they slaughtered. That's when Riku told me to run so I immediately set off for my father's house. After finding him, we came straight here on our horse, Philippe. I haven't seen Riku or Xion since, I'm afraid."

Adam then looked over at Luna and extended his hand toward her. "Where are my manners? I'm Adam. And you're Luna, correct? Belle's told me all about you."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, you're highness. Likewise, I've learned all about you from Sora," Luna said, accepting his hand without hesitation.

"Well, hopefully not all of it," Adam said with a chuckle.

"Sorry, princey. Anyway, do you know what happened to all the townspeople who lived there?" Sora asked.

"They're safe and back in the time. I used to be able to journey there every day with Belle to help with the restoration but nowadays I don't have too much time on my hands. When we visited the town the first time though the attackers were gone," Adam explained.

"Then… they were just passing through?" Sora asked.

"Could be, but I think the important thing here is that Riku and Xion were last seen when they were around. You find the attackers and you may get some clue as to where Riku and Xion are."

"Easier said than-" A suddenly grumble from Luna's stomach cut her words off and she blushed.

Adam laughed and looked to Cogsworth. "Before you two set off again, Cogsworth, would you be so kind as to show our guests to the kitchens?"

"Of course, Master Adam. Sora, Luna, if you could come this way please," Cogsworth said. He joined the group at the bottom and led them in the direction of the first door on the left that they had passed upon entering the entrance hall. After heading down a long corridor that resembled the one leading to Belle's older room, they finally reached a door placed in between two tapestries on either side, each one depicting something different.

Noting their interest, Cogsworth couldn't help but start gabbing. "Indeed, what you see here is actually beautifully woven tapestries by the family hand weaver Jean Luc. Unfortunately, he is no longer with us and the majority of the tapestries were taken down by the Prince during his tenure as the… well, you know. Anyway, the one on the left depicts the joining of two families, particularly that of the Prince Adam's mother and father. Their joining was supposed to usher in a new era of peace between the two families after decades of tension. Of course, the prince rarely ever got to see his parents, who spent most of their time at the King's Court leaving him to be cared for in the presence of the servants here. Prince Adam doesn't exactly have fond memories of them and for understandable reasons."

"So that's why he was so cold and distant then. I'm sure his mom and dad not being around must have played into his distrust of others," Luna said.

"'tis as you say. He did spend quite a lot of time in the library surrounded by books when he was younger and while his intellect and cognitive abilities were quite astounding for one his age, he had no one to really share that with," Cogsworth said.

"'tis better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all', or have been loved in this case. That's how one of my favorite poems put it… wait, did you say library?" Luna eyes sparkled as soon as she let Cogsworth's words sink in.

"There it is," Sora said with a smirk.

"Quiet, Sora. Cogsworth, do you think Prince Adam will let me have a look inside after we've finished eating?" Luna asked.

"I know you told me to be quiet, but I honestly think you could satisfy your hunger on books alone," Sora replied. "Anyway, why are we standing out here? Let's get some grub!"

"Uh- uh- but don't you want to hear about the other tapestry? It comes from one of my favorite plays," Cogsworth said quickly.

"No really. Maybe next time," Sora dismissed quickly. He would make sure there would never be a next time or Cogsworth would end up rambling for a long time and he wasn't sure if he could survive that. The trio entered the door and came to a room with many copper pots and pans hanging on hooks attached to the walls. On the long table was also many dishes and treats, some the likes of which Sora and Luna had never seen before in their lives.

A crash from the corner of the room turned their attention to the source of the noise. A bunch pots had fallen from their perched hooks and fell on top of Lumière and Babette after having crashed into them.

A fuming Cogsworth jumped up and down. "Lumière, you fool! Do you have a brain in that head of yours?"

Mrs Potts, who had been by the sink, came running over and, much like Cogsworth, seemed quite infuriated, at least until she spotted Sora and Luna. "Oh, it's so good to see you, Sora. And this must be your friend, yes?"

"I suppose you could say that. Luna, this is Mrs. Potts, the head housekeeper at the castle. You're looking lovely, Mrs Potts," Sora complimented.

"Thank you, dear. And it's nice to meet you, Lu- Oi, you better not be leaving those pots there for me to clean up, the pair of ya! Yes, I see you trying to not look at me Lumière." She then turned back to Luna and quickly apologized. "Sorry about that, love. It's good to meet you, Luna. I just wish you hadn't been here to see… well, that."

"It's okay, Mrs. Potts. Cogsworth just brought us here because we were kind of hungry mungry at the moment," Luna explained.

"Oh, well that we can fix. Feel free to take anything you want from the table. This is all for lunch anyway," Mrs. Potts said.

"THIS is for lunch?" Sora asked, eyeing the entire table in surprise.

"We have a lot of guests staying at the castle what with those who have lost their homes back in the village, and the Prince needs his energy to do his daily duties," Mrs. Potts answered.

"You don't get stressed out by all the work? I can't imagine tending to an entire castle is an easy thing," Luna said.

"Well, it certainly pays for a start," Mrs. Potts said with a laugh.

Luna laughed along. "True. What else do you need?"

With that said, the two guests dug into the food offered without complaint. Sora helped himself to an apple pie and one of the dishes containing garlic chicken livers, finishing off with the spring rolls in dipping sauce. As expected, everything was delicious. He would have eaten more too if he wasn't conscience that the servants had made the food for the other guests of the castle as well.

Luna finished her own meal plus the additional crepes and chocolate fudge cake and set her plate down along with the fork. "Whew! That hit the spot. When you realize the last time you had a proper meal was back on Balthier's ship, you really can't help but dig in."

"Gotta agree with that. Thanks for that, Mrs. Potts," Sora said.

"Oh, no need to thank me. It's all Chef Bouche who prepared this food," replied Mrs. Potts. She pointed to a man in the back who was so absorbed in the process of dicing his onions that he paid little heed to those around him. "So where are you dears off to next?"

* * *

After spending about half an hour in what had to have been one of the most extravagant libraries Sora had ever seen, he and Luna soon arrived at the entrance hall again, ready to depart for the village. He was cautiously optimistic but he honestly didn't expect to find much. As much as he tried to tell himself to stay positive, he wasn't sure how much evidence would be left given how much time had passed.

Belle had asked to come with them at least to the village, and Sora would have gladly obliged if he had intended to return to the castle. The only problem was that he had no such plans of returning until at least after he had found Riku and he wasn't about to leave Belle in the village by herself either. He didn't think it was simply coincidence that the Keyblade wielders had specifically attacked Belle's village of all places. That she was a Princess of Heart served to further fuel these doubts.

"If I may suggest something, you can take Belle with you and I'll come to pick her up later once all my work is done," Adam proposed after Sora raised the problem to him.

"But… it's still too risky," Sora said with some apprehension.

"Sora, please. I can help. I owe as much to Riku and Xion after what they've done for me. Riku's been through so many difficult ordeals in his past. He even told me about his mother and- well, I want to help. He shouldn't have to suffer," Belle said.

"His mother?" Sora asked. There was a brief pause before continuing. "He told you about that, huh?"

"And his father too. My mother died soon after I was born so I didn't really know her, but Riku's mother… I can't even begin to imagine how painful it is to lose someone you love. If Riku is hurting now, then I have a duty to help him and Xion to the best of my ability," Belle said.

This came as a surprise to Sora. Riku never usually liked talking about his family life to others and he rarely brought it up with Sora so it was strange to hear about Riku being so open to someone else.

"Belle doesn't take no for an answer. You've already lost, Sora," Adam said with a chuckle.

A look of amusement dawned on Sora's face. "Well, that's one thing her and Kairi share, that's for sure. Alright, to the town then."

After saying their goodbyes to Adam, Lumière (who had somehow managed to wiggle his way out of trouble with Babette) and Cogsworth, the trio set off for the Gummi Ship again. As they were halfway down the bridge, a voice called out to them from behind. The elderly, obese man in question was soon standing in front of them and trying to catch his breath.

"Papa, is something wrong?" Belle asked.

Sora raised an eyebrow. "That's your father, Belle?"

"Yes, his name is Maurice. He's an inventor," Belle told them before returning to her father. "You need to get out more, Papa."

"Oh, nonsense. I'm fine," Maurice shrugged off. "I… want to… come with you."

"Are you sure?" Belle asked.

"Well, I certainly can't stay in bed all day now, can I? I have to start working again some time," Maurice said.

"I don't see why not. At least Belle has someone to keep her company as well," Luna said. The four of them continued onwards to the forest and to the Gummi Ship which could easily get them to the town within a few minutes.

Sora poked his head out of the ship and watched in amusement as Maurice fumbled about, marvelling at the ship from different angles. Belle poked her head out from underneath and smirked.

"Papa, if you want to stay, that's fine but-"

"No, no, no. I'm just… um, well this is incredible! What kind of contraption is this?" Maurice asked.

"A flying ship," Sora deliberately enunciated, taking great joy in the situation.

"A ship that flies? Through the sky?" Maurice blinked several times as Sora nodded slowly at him. "I don't even know where to begin… You will allow me to tinker with it a bit, won't you?"

"Sorry, no can do, Papa. Sora actually wants to be able to fly his ship by the time we've left," Belle replied. Maurice seemed a little disappointed by this but realizing that they were pressed for time, reluctantly resigned his examination and came on board. It wasn't like he didn't have plenty of other things to examine inside the ship anyway.

* * *

 ** _Riquewihr_ , _North Eastern France_**

With mountains jotting out and surrounding the village, it was difficult to find a place to land. Fortunately, there was a hill not too far that provided a source of flat land. Sora also wasn't used to actually having to land the Gummi Ship. In the past, he could just rest the ship above the world and beam down towards it. Therefore, when it came to landings, theirs was rougher than expected.

After the nightmare landing, the group arrived in the village within minutes to see the locals all contributing to the rebuilding of their town in some way. As they walked through the town, others stopped to greet Belle and Maurice. An all-around amicable atmosphere made the idea that anything that could have happened to the town in recent memory could only have been good, but the look of the town proved contradictory.

Scorched roofs, shattered windows, some buildings completely demolished leaving the most obvious of gaps to what would otherwise be a street of symmetrical buildings… the way Sora saw it, there were two possible ways anyone could see this. The first, the half full approach, being that community spirit was triumphing over the evils that had tried to destroy it. It definitely warmed his heart to see that the town had not been scared off by their recent encounter, and Belle had no doubt played a significant role in that motivation.

The half-empty approach was of course far less likely to take that into account. In this view, Sora felt like something inside him had shattered. That it shouldn't have come to this, here or in Radiant Garden and more than likely many other places that Sora may or may not come across eventually. What had warranted so much suffering in the first place? Try to rebuild their homes all they might, they could not replace the more valuable things in life that had been snatched from them.

He truly wished he could be of the former mindset, if not just to selfishly exonerate the guilt he felt from having been the one to cause this.

"So where do we start?" Luna was first to question.

"How about we split up? Papa and I will head in this direction and see if we can gather information and you and Luna can go that way. We'll meet back up here in an hour," Belle planned out. Sora looked around to see that they were at a split junction with a "Y" shape, a building dividing the streets in the middle.

"Alright, see in you a bit," Sora said. He and Luna watched as Belle and her father travelled down the left street, heading over to the first person they saw. Sora and Luna were about to start down the remaining street when Luna brought up the idea of summoning the Gullwings to help them. Sora quickly cast the summoning spell, Luna acting as his shield so that no one would spot him doing so. It had occurred to Sora, after all, that waving a key around in a town that had recently been victim to a whole scourge of them wasn't exactly the best idea.

After Yuna, Rikku and Paine popped into existence, Sora quickly gave them a rundown on what they were doing and the group quickly got to work. Sora moved from one person to the next, hoping to find some information on Riku and Xion, however no seemed to have any information for them. In retrospect, Sora wasn't sure why he was so surprised by that. If he had been running for his life through chaos filled streets, he wouldn't want to pay much attention to what others were doing around him either.

Time passed and Sora began to feel increasingly frustrated. Maybe Belle and Maurice had had better luck than he, Luna or the Gullwings. Sora dug into his pocket and pulled out the PHS that Merlin had given him. He pressed the Home button and the screen lit up, displaying the time and… not much else. No signal. That was fine anyway, he only wanted to check the time but all the same, he really had to wonder why he was given something that hardly even worked. What did no signal even mean anyway?

He started walking, flicking through the applications on the device as he did. He had a few minutes to pass and he very much doubted he would find anyone that could specifically remember Riku and Xion back then. He entered camera mode and held it up to his face. He had discovered a pretty neat feature while on the Gummi Ship mode called 'selfie mode' (he had jokingly dubbed it 'Selphie mode') which allowed him to take pictures of himself. As he was about to take the shot, he collided with someone else who had just emerged from the tavern. The PHS flew out of his hands and hit the ground, its user falling to the ground along with it and the person he had bumped into.

Sora cursed and stood up quickly, extending his eyes towards the man. He was gray, pale and old with dark circles under his eyes. Rather than taking Sora's hand, the man stood up himself.

"Next time you should watch wear your going, young man," he said, staring down at Sora with a look of disgust.

"Sorry…" Sora apologized feeling quite uneasy about the situation. He turned around to see the PHS on the ground and quickly made for it, checking to see if it was still working. Sora breathed a sigh of relief when the screen immediately came to life.

He looked up in time to see the man walking in the opposite direction. Figuring there was no harm in also asking the old man, Sora called after him.

"Sorry, I'm just wondering if you've ever seen a guy named Riku, who has silver hair, or a girl named Xion, she had black hair? Or maybe even if you've seen any people wielding keys about?" Sora asked. The man seemed to freeze in place for a moment. Sora wasn't sure if it were possible, but he seemed to get even paler.

"I- I'm afraid I have no idea," the man said quickly before turning to leave again, this time in allegro. An unamused look formed on Sora's face and he began moving in tow. It was a powerful thirst for knowledge that drove him to pursuing this man. The man was hiding something, and that he was walking away in a hurry and acting so strange indicated that it was something huge.

Every now and then, the man looked back to see Sora behind him. He quickened his pace. To any passer-by, the act of a teenager following an old man down the street must have been a suspicious one. Sora didn't really care. Compared to looking shady, his friends' lives were far more important.

Sora soon spotted Luna just up ahead. Their eyes met and she was about to say something but Sora nudged his head from Luna to the old man several times, hoping she'd get the hint. Luna nodded quickly, confirming she understood and pretended to casually walk towards them. As soon as she neared, she intentionally turned and backed into him, knocking him to the side. Luna turned around and acted surprised.

"Oh dear, I'm so sorry! I can be pretty clumsy, you see. My friend Astra used to tell me that all the time. Say, how about I make it up to you? What do you say to me buying you a drink?" Luna asked.

"No, no, I'm quite alright," said the man. He tried to move again, but he found himself in place by a hand on his shoulder. Luna summoned her Keyblade and stuck it in between her and him, the tip digging into the nape of his neck.

"No, I insist."

* * *

 **A/N: So when I do research for these kinds of worlds, I kind of like just rewatching the movies and looking at all the little details. Doing so now for Beauty and the Beast, and I couldn't help but ponder this. How the hell did Mrs. Potts have Chip? He couldn't be any older than nine, right? Definitely in his single digits anyway. How did Mrs. Potts manage to have a child while being cursed and turned into a teapot, given that the prince was turned into a Beast at the age of 11? I can only imagine he's adopted but anyway, this is why you shouldn't over analyze Disney movies too much. Speaking of why, why does she have six other children? Or does she have more and if so, what age did she have the- okay, I'll shut up now.**


	9. An Angel With Clipped Wings

Chapter 8

An Angel With Clipped Wings

 ** _Tavern, Riquewihr_**

After leading the old man back towards the tavern, he, Luna and Sora found a table in the corner of the room and sat down. Summoning Dream Seeker again, Luna rested it on the old man's lap.

"You bring attention to us in anyway and I won't hold back," Luna warned. The man warily glanced off towards the side for a moment. Sora slammed his hand on the table, the old man's eyes snapping back to its original position.

"Let's start with the obvious. Who are you?" Sora asked.

"I am Monsieur D'Arque. I have been keeper of the Maison Des Lunes for almost most of my adult life. It's an asylum not too far from here, or perhaps I should say, I used to be keeper," replied the old man slowly.

"Used to be?"

"Mmm. You wish to know what happened to your friends, yes? Since I've already benefited from the transaction, I have no qualms about disclosing this information. The asylum is out of my hands. It is as you imagine. The asylum now plays host to the people who attacked the town over a month ago. I'm sure that if you wish to find those friends of yours, the asylum would naturally be the best place to look."

"Why did you just hand it to them? What did they give to you that was so important that you'd just give up something you've known most of your life?" Sora asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" D'Arque leaned forward, a curl on his pale lips. "I did it for the money."

He seemed to take amusement in the anger that flashed in Sora's eyes. He leaned back, satisfied, and rested his elbows on the table, placing his hands under his chin.

"What about the attack? Did you know the attack was going to happen?" Luna asked.

"They may have mentioned something like that. I probably didn't pay much attention however. Such a thing is hardly my concern. I did not question what they were going to do with the asylum," D'Arque said.

"Do the people of this village mean nothing to you? People have lost their homes… their families… and all you can think about is lining your own pockets?" Luna asked.

"Forget it, Luna. I'm sure he doesn't have a sympathetic bone in his body," Sora said to her before glaring at D'Arque. "You sold out my friends, this entire town, for money? You're scum and I will never forgive you!"

"You can keep your forgiveness, unless it holds some sort of intrinsic value, that is," D'Arque said.

"Sora, come on, let's go. It's about time we met up with Belle and Maurice," Luna said to him.

D'Arque rubbed his chin with a smirk. "Ah, Maurice, you say? Do give crazy old Maurice my regards. We have a lot of catching up to do, him and I."

"That's funny. The only crazy person I see is the one in front of me right now," Luna retorted. Noticing Sora's clenched knuckles whitening, Luna stood and placed a hand on Sora's shoulder, saying again, "Let's go."

Sora looked to her hand, following it upwards to eventually meet Luna's calm blue eyes. He had no idea how she could be so calm in the presence of this man. He pulled his chair back and stood up.

"You won't get away with this," Sora said.

"But I've done nothing wrong, unless you're telling me that simple business transactions are illegal nowadays," D'Arque challenged. Sora winced before turning on his heel and leaving with Luna. They were only just out of the tavern when Luna spoke again.

"You can't let people like him get under your skin. I learned that much from Abraxas. Those kinds of people will do anything to make you react. They get satisfaction out of it. We need to be better than that."

"I know. I shouldn't have allowed him to get to me like that. It doesn't matter now anyway. Let's meet up with Belle, Maurice and the Gullwings," Sora said. As promised, when they arrived back at the junction, the others were there to greet them.

"Sora, I think we have something!" Belle exclaimed upon seeing them.

"What a coincidence. I was about to say the same. Okay, yours first," Sora said.

"Riku apparently helped out a mother and her child on the day those people attacked. He rescued the boy and told him to run in the direction of his mother. I know that's not much, but at least we found someone who saw him. As for Xion, no such luck, I'm afraid," Belle said.

"That's okay. We still have something, remember?" Sora went on to retell everything that had happened with his encounter of D'Arque. His recount left Maurice absolutely fuming, who threw his hands up in the air.

"That man has been after my inventions for a while now. He's a truly despicable person. I'm sorry you even had the misfortune of encountering him," he said.

"True, he wasn't exactly the type of person I wanted to hear the information from, but we do have an idea now where Riku and Xion might be," Sora said.

"The Maison Des Lunes… so what's the plan?" Belle asked.

"We're going in. Tonight."

"But you have no idea what could be there. You could be walking into a trap," Belle argued.

"Could be, but Riku wouldn't hesitate. He'd do whatever it took to rescue me. That's why I can't run away. Trap or not, I'm getting Riku and Xion out of there tonight," Sora said before looking to Luna and the Gullwings. He put his hand forward. "You with me? It's gonna be dangerous."

"What a silly question to ask. Always," Luna said, placing her hand above his. The Gullwings all did the same, their small hands fitting easily within the area of Luna's hand. Whatever the danger, they were all prepared to face it, because Riku and Xion probably had been facing it for even longer.

* * *

 ** _Maison Des Lunes Entrance, Near Riquewihr_**

After hanging out in the town for a few hours, Sora and Luna had said their goodbyes to Belle and Maurice after seeing them safely in the hands of Prince Adam (who had arrived shortly before the evening) before heading back to the Gummi Ship. It was time to put their plan into motion.

They stationed the Gummi Ship about a mile from the building they had located as the asylum. After sending the Gullwings in first to infiltrate and survey the building, Sora and Luna hung back by the Gummi Ship to kill time until their return.

"You nervous?" Luna asked, handing him a water bottle she had just drank from.

"Aren't you? We need to be in and out of there quickly. We can't risk drawing too much attention and if we do get spotted… well. I mean, it's not exactly something we're used to, is it?" Sora replied before taking a sip.

"It isn't… but I think we can do this. We promised Cid and everyone else that we'd help take back Radiant Garden after all. A-and I want to see Aunt Kit and Astra again too. I won't fail," Luna said.

"Yeah. We can't afford to," Sora said. He was about to lift the bottle again to his mouth when he saw three small shapes heading towards them in the distance. "They're back."

"How did things go?" Luna asked when Yuna, Rikku and Paine finally arrived in front of them.

"There are a few people here and there but nothing too serious. If it's a secret hideout, the number of people there are sparse," Paine said.

"We couldn't find Riku and Xion though. Then again, we didn't get a chance to go into any of the doors either," Rikku added.

"Then we still don't know much. Anything could be behind those doors, including more of theirs," Sora said. "We'll just have to go in and hope for the best. I'll take point, okay?"

Travelling the rest of the way to the asylum, Sora stopped at the front doors and peered through the glass to check the reception area. Satisfied, he pulled out his Keyblade and unlocked the door, allowing them to slip through. Sora's eyes searched the room before finally setting on the reception desk to his right. He walked over and pulled open the draws, searching for anything that could help them. He was hoping to find a map or site plan that could give him a rough idea of where to go. It was Eleftheria's knowledge of a site plan that helped him and Celes to reach the Turm des Himmels after all.

"Sora," Luna whispered, showing him something. It looked like she had found it first. She set the plan on the table so they could all read. The asylum was split into different blocks, the closest to the administrative block that they were currently in being the sick and infirm blocks.

The asylum was completely overwhelming, which probably was in itself an obstacle to finding his friends. There were several corridors connecting to each other like a network and within these corridors were either blocks at the end of them or smaller rooms with tiny rectangles that were probably cells. They had probably made the design intentionally baffling to prevent anyone from escaping.

The best way Sora could possibly compartmentalize the entire facility was that at its most basic, it was split into two— the left side of the plan reserved to host males while the right side to host females. Because of this, the building was symmetrical, containing the same blocks on either side of the asylum like a mirror. Therefore, if they memorized the route of one side of the asylum, they could expect to also know the second half.

The group continued on down the empty hallway. The corridors that they travelled down were incredibly clean with hardly a crack or grime on the floor or walls. In the end it didn't matter how clean the corridors were though. That empty and hollow feeling of dread dangled in mid-air like an anchor about to come down on them at any minute. There was also a most pungent odor in the air, like the smell of ether. Sora tried his best to ignore it and pressed on.

They soon entered a square room with three paths on the left, right and in front of him. While two of the paths were open and available to exploration, the path on the left was barred by a locked security gate. Before Sora could point the Keyblade at it, he heard the sound of footsteps from behind him.

"Over there," Sora whispered, pointing to the wall next to the unlocked path on the right side. The group stuck to the wall like glue with Sora closest to the corner. A woman in a blue dress and a white apron with a red cross on it soon walked through, seemingly off in her own world. As she turned for the corridor that Sora and the others had come from, Sora quickly tapped her on the shoulder. She spun around and her eyes grew big for a moment. Her lips parted but were stopped from uttering anything by Sora's finger on them.

When he was sure the nurse wouldn't scream, he took his hand away and produced the site map from his pocket, opening it up to her.

"I won't hurt you. I just want you to answer some questions for me. True or false, a group of people came here about a month or so ago."

The woman looked over to Luna for a moment before returning her gaze to Sora. She nodded.

"True? Okay then, next question. They're still here. True or false?"

Another nod. Then she whispered, "We're not supposed to talk about them. They hear everything."

"I understand," Sora whispered back. "Please. I need to know where they are. Can you point it out on this map for me? They have my friends."

The woman pointed towards one of the blocks on the top left, labelled the chronic block. "This block has been abandoned ever since the chronic and epileptic departments merged a few months back due to a gas leak. Your best bet is over there. May I?"

The woman took out a set of keys from her pocket to show him and Sora stepped back a bit. She walked over to the locked gate and searched for a specific key before using it to unlocking the gate.

"Thank you. So we follow the corridor and take the third right?" Luna checked, closing in on Sora to check the map.

The woman nodded before staring at Sora's hand. Confused, it took him a moment to realize he still had his Keyblade in his hand. Maybe she had seen those other wielders carrying one too.

"Don't worry, I'm not like them. I use this to protect people," Sora reassured.

"I believe you. Could you not get rid of them for us?" the nurse asked.

"I can't make promises I'm not sure I'll be able to keep," Sora replied. Rescuing Riku and Xion was one thing. Kicking a whole group of Keyblade wielders out was something entirely different. Besides, if he did such a thing, there was a risk that things could backfire quickly. No, there was too much risk involved. Instead he looked at her and said, "You should do yourself a favor and quit. This job isn't worth it."

"I can't do that. I have a family to feed. I also feel like I have a duty to these people. To help them get better. If I were to run away, I feel like I'd just be giving up on them," answered the nurse.

"I see. Thank you anyway," Sora accepted sadly.

"Be careful," the Nurse said with a nod. She turned and continued on her way to the administrative block, leaving Sora, Luna and the Gullwings to set off down the path she had opened for them.

As they walked down the long corridor, Sora looked at Luna and said, "It's hard to say no sometimes, but what else could I do?"

"I think you were right to say that," Yuna said, gliding gracefully through the air alongside him. "As much as we'd all love a perfect outcome, it simply isn't possible. It's a game of pick and choose and unfortunately some will benefit while others won't. You can't stray from what you came here to do."

"I know you're right. Even so, if this is war then these choices are only going to get harder from here on out," Sora said. Just how many times would he have to look the other way? It was a scary thought, but he had no time to dwell on it. He had to focus on finding Riku and Xion.

A sudden ear piercing scream sent shivers down their spines. It was coming from farther down the corridor in what would be the block for acute illnesses. The way they were heading required them to turn just before that block though. As the screams became louder and louder, the group found it harder to ignore them. Luna was about to comment on it when she let out a scream as a loud slam was heard from the cell next to her as she passed. They turned to see a man looking from the small glass window of the door, his eyes red and puffy.

"Please, get me out of here! I keep telling tell I'm not insane but they won't listen! You've gotta help me!" cried the man.

"I- I-" Luna stumbled over her words. She eventually looked away from him and towards Sora. "What do we do?"

Paine flew in front of Sora's face, obstructing Luna's view of him. "Honestly, you kids really are sympathetic to a fault. Remember what Yuna said? We can't save everyone. Besides, if he actually is unstable and he's lying or just thinks he isn't then you'll have just done more harm than good in the long run, both to the staff here and him. Don't forget where you are. No matter how much they cry and plea, you can't listen."

"Luna, let's go," Sora said, starting off on his own. Luna looked at the man one last time and instantly regretted it. He was shaking his head, pleading silently with her. He reminded her of herself, when she had once been a Chimera. She was silently crying out for attention, and she had wanted someone, anyone, to listen. Fortunately Sora and his friends had done more than that, but she could not do it for this man now. With a pang of guilt, she looked away and continued on. The cries of the man calling for her not to leave him only hurt all the more every step she took.

The group continued down the corridor, distancing themselves from the man, but not once did the screams that haunt the corridor die down. These were the screams of other patients, many of which Sora and Luna could not bear to think about and because of that, they felt even more guilty. Soon, they reached the abandoned chronic block, situated towards the end of the corridor. Before Sora could go towards it, Luna stopped him with a hand on his arm.

"Sora, the map plans say there's a circuit breaker room just further down here, right? Why not use it to our advantage?"

"You mean as a distraction?"

Luna nodded. "I can shut off the power and give you a chance to find Riku and Xion. If there's anyone in the chronic block they'll probably come out to try and reset the breaker."

Sora shook his head. "Not you. I don't know Xion or Riku's condition yet. I might need you."

Luna looked up towards the Gullwings. "Then you three? Think you're up to the task?"

"A fool who underestimates YRP is a most foolish fool indeed!" Yuna exclaimed, falling in between Rikku and Paine to enact their pose.

"Right… I'll just leave that to you guys then. Just be sure to only shut down the one that controls the chronic block here, okay?" Sora instructed. Splitting from the Gullwings, Sora and Luna found a bench they could hide under along the corridor to the chronic block. It wasn't exactly comfortable and Sora and Luna had to scoop up against each other to hide completely under it, but they somehow managed.

They waited one minute. Two minutes. Three. Sora was beginning to wonder if something had gone wrong, but then surely the Gullwings would have told them. Just as he thought to check up on them, the door leading to the abandoned block barged open and a person with black leather combat boots walked past them. Sora inched his way bit by bit out of his hiding place and sneaked over to the man before swinging his Keyblade at the man's temple. The blunt side of the blade connected and knocked the man into the wall. He dashed forward and pulled at the man's collar before punching him to the floor.

"Where are Riku and Xion?" Sora asked, bending down to grab him by his collar again.

"You're… Sora?" the man asked. Sora threw another punch, this time aiming for the nose. When his fist left, a trickle of blood poured out of a dislodged nose. Sora hated to be so violent, but right now he didn't care. If he had to get rough with people who had burnt down a town and taken lives because they could, then so be it.

"Answer the question!" Sora snarled.

"Okay, okay. Riku in cell 23-"

"Mark it on here," Sora said, holding out the map for him.

"But I don- hab pen," the man replied, his words slightly incoherent due to his broken nose.

"I'm sure you're creative. Figure it out."

The man gulped and reached upwards towards his face. Removing the blood from under his nose he placed two crimson dots on separate areas of the chronic block. Riku and Xion appeared to be in two different rooms in the chronic block with Riku being to the south and Xion in the north.

"How many of your people are there?" Sora asked after carefully examining the map.

"Seben right now, I think."

"You think?"

"I know! I know!"

"That's what I thought you said. Thanks for your help. Better go reset that circuit breaker now, huh?" Sora advised sneakily. Once Sora and Luna left him, he would find himself at the mercy, or lack thereof, of the Gullwings. Knowing that, he joined up with Luna again without taking another look at the man to see whether he had gotten up or not and together they entered into the now unlocked chronic block.

The first thing Sora felt as he took his first steps into the block was uneasiness, that which was well known to accompany the darkness. With no lights to guide them, the only thing he could rely on was for his eyes to eventually adjust to the dark. Beside him he could hear Luna's inconsistent breaths, every inhale and exhale. He was even aware of his own.

"What do we do now?" Luna whispered in his ear.

"We'll get Riku out first, then go and get Xion."

"Hmm. How about I go and get Xion and you get Riku?"

Sora's eyes widened though Luna probably wasn't likely to have seen it. "You're kidding, right? I'm not leaving you alone by yourself here. What if you're spotted?"

"Sora, we need to move fast or who knows what will happen when the lights come back on. We can't deliberate on this any further. I'm going for Xion, you're going for Riku."

"What? No, I didn't agree to that! Luna? Luna?!" Sora called out, but no one called out to him. Suddenly, Sora felt very vulnerable. It was with trepidation that he moved forward cautiously. He leaned against the wall, using it as a guide to keep left.

He caught sight of something. A blue light in the distance. Probably from another Keyblade wielder. He crouched low and kept moving, stopping just near the woman. He waited until she looked the other way before springing forward and firing a beam from the tip of his Keyblade that struck her and sent her crumpling to the floor. It was probably best to get rid of whoever was in his way now to allow for a smooth exit later.

Not wanting to leave the woman out in the open, Sora picked her up and continued onward in sear of somewhere to hide her body. He soon arrived in the room to the south of the block's entrance and stopped upon hearing voices.

"This is ridiculous. What the hell's taking Erickson so long?" asked one of the men.

"Yeah, it shouldn't be taking him this long. Boy, this place is the pits though. Trust the boss to choose such an awful place to stay. Can't even get sleep without hearing screams from the neighboring wards," replied another.

"Where is the boss right now anyway?"

"I heard he has some business in some place called Middleton. You know, a real nice city, bustling urban population, shopping malls with some nice restaurants, not that we'd want any of that, right?"

"Hey, if you have a complaint, feel free to take it up with the boss," this disembodied voice belonged to a third in the room, a woman with a husky voice.

"Hell no! I don't have a death wish. You go against the boss and you may as well just hang yourself there and then," the second voice dismissed.

"You know I hear they say that behind the boss' shades are the eyes of a demon's. That's why he never takes them off," came the first voice.

"That's nonsense. It's nonsense… right?"

"Enough blabbering, the both of you. Go and see if Erickson's alright. I have a bad feeling about this," said the woman. The conversation seemed to finish there and Sora heard approaching footsteps. Now in a room complete with a number of cells, Sora was easily able to hide before they approached by unlocking one of the cells nearby and stepping into its dark confines. He set the body of the woman in the corner of the room and made his way to the door, making sure it was slightly ajar.

He waited until their footsteps passed and dulled in the distance before leaving the cell and continuing down the corridor and around the corner where he heard the voices. The woman had long since disappeared from sight, giving him a clear view of the cells… where Riku would be. There was at least some comfort in his mind that if the man he'd interrogated had been telling the truth, the majority of guards were on his side of the block. He felt a bit more hopeful for Luna's situation because of that.

Arriving at the cells, he started checking them one by one. He probably should have just checked the twenty-third cell like the man had told him, he still couldn't help but be curious at each of the rooms. When he peered into them, all he saw was a dark, small room with no windows through which light could peer in. Eventually he arrived at the one that was different from the others, accurate to where the man had marked on the site plan. Sora unlocked the door and stepped into the musty cell.

There was a boy lying on the floor, his back turned to Sora and facing the pale wall. Even so, Sora could make out his silver hair even through the dark.

"Riku!" Sora whispered to him. His friend didn't respond. Sora walked over to him and turned him over. They both stared at each other in wide-eyed surprise, but for different reasons presumably. For Sora, it was because the person in front of him scarcely looked like the Riku he knew. He was pale and thin with dark circles under his eyes, or eye, Sora should say, for he wore a bandage over his right eye. He was also shirtless. Sora looked down to see several long marks and scars across his body, some more recent than others.

"Sora… I'm not hallucinating, am I? Is it really you?" Riku murmured.

"I'm here, Riku. I'm here to rescue you," Sora replied.

"Sora, what happened, man? You look like crap," Riku said with a light chuckle.

"Like you can talk. Anyway, we have to move quickly. Can you walk?" Sora asked.

"You think I'd been on the ground here if I could? They take out your legs for exactly that purpose," Riku said.

Sora nodded slowly. "Alright then. I'll just have to carry you."

Riku snorted. "You, carry me? Don't make me laugh. Seriously, it hurts enough to laugh as it is. My lungs feel like they've been barbequed. No, forget me. Xion's here as well so-"

"Luna's getting her as we speak. Anyway, I've been working out a fair bit you'll find," Sora said.

"Funny, from where I'm standing. You still look scrawny as hell to me," Riku said. Sora said nothing else, but picked Riku up and placed him over his shoulders, wrapping his right arm around Riku's right leg and arm. Sora checked to make sure Riku was properly balanced before heading out once more. The lights had yet to come on, probably because the Gullwings were doing a good job of handling the other two guards by themselves.

Sora turned the corridor and followed it all the way back down to the chronic block's entrance. It was only as he reached that the lights came back on followed by two synchronous screams that filled the air.

"Oh, mother of pearl! It's just you," Sora said, relieved after recovering from his fright upon seeing Luna. She had been standing right next to him when the light had come back on and hadn't even made a sound. She was also carrying an unconscious Xion on her back. It took a while for Sora to realize it was her however since she her hair had grown to become shoulder-length.

"Luna, is Xion… alright?" Riku said, trying to crane his neck as much as possible to see Luna.

"She was badly beaten, it look like. I'm not doctor but even I can tell there are some serious injuries here. She's alive though, so we need to get her out of here as fast as possible," Luna explained.

"Alright, stick close to me. Come on," Sora said, starting on another jog.

The rest of their journey to the outside of the asylum was uneventful. They managed to join up with the Gullwings to find three bodies on the floor in front of them. Retracing their steps, which proved easier than they had initially thought it would be, they soon found themselves back in the administrative block with the entrance up ahead.

The night sky greeted them in all its strangeness. It was still not a sky they were used to seeing, even with having three and a half months to come to terms with it. Now all that greeted them in the sky was a small white moon somewhere in the distance. Sora wondered if he could fly to it.

Sora found himself slowing down as he and Luna travelled up a hill to reach their ship. His arms and legs were silently screaming for release, but he ignored his desire for rest and pushed on. When he opened up the cockpit doors to the ship and stepped in, he let out the biggest sigh of relief. He brought Riku into one of the rooms and laid him down on the bed, stretching soon after.

"Man, that hurt. Still, it's good to see you again, Riku," Sora said, continuing to stretch while looking at him.

"It's good to see you again too, old friend," Riku murmured.

"I'll just get the ship started then I'll come back, okay?" Sora asked. Riku shifted his head slightly in the bed. Sora left the room and headed back to the cockpit to find the Gullwings and Luna waiting for him.

"Riku's doing alright?" Luna asked.

"As far as I can tell. Like Xion, he looks a little worse for wear though," Sora said. He entered in a few commands and started the engine. Sora yanked on the center stick. The ship shot forward and took off into the sky. After a few more button presses, the ship was set on autopilot mode and left the seat.

"You going to check in on Riku?" Luna asked.

"Yeah. I'll be back soon," Sora told her before heading back to Riku's room. He sat down on the bed and looked around the room for a moment before looking back at Riku. "What happened to your eye?"

"An example of what happens when you piss off a nutcase, I suppose," Riku said. "So now I suppose I have one eye. But one is all I need anyway for that man. I'm one thing but Xion… Xion had to suffer. Every. Single. Day. And I couldn't help her. Day in and day out, I heard her cries echo down the hallway. When I didn't hear them, I was even more worried. The brief moments that they let us see each other… well, those aren't really times I look back on fondly."

"Riku, I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that," Sora said.

Riku continued staring at the underside of the top bunk as he spoke. "What's done is done. I can't change the past. Only rectify the problems I'm facing ahead of me. That starts with that man. Their boss. His real name is Janus, but they have a nickname for him. The Spectre. You didn't see him around, did you?"

"No. Though I did hear something from his lackeys on my way to you. He's apparently left for some place called Middleton, I think they said." Sora said.

"Then that's where we're going," Riku said.

"Hold it, Riku. You're going nowhere in your condition. You need at least a few days rest. We're heading back to Prince Adam's castle so you and Xion can recuperate."

"Even if my body rests, my mind won't. All I can see now when I close this eye is him. I can picture everything so vividly, as if it only happened just yesterday. No, I'll never truly be able to rest until I find that man, and not just him, Sora, but every single person who has or will aim to do us wrong in the future. These Keyblade wielders from the past who should have stayed dead, Moira's Crescent, KRONOS, Xanatos… I don't care who's in my way. I'll destroy every last one of them."

Sora was usually never too concerned for Riku's wellbeing. He was certainly more capable than Sora when it came to it, but for the first time in a while, Sora had concerns. He had gone into the asylum expecting to find his friend. Why was it now that he couldn't help but think that he had come out of it with someone entirely different?

* * *

 **A/N: So the chapter title is a reference to a certain artwork from KH1 which depicts Riku with a wing behind him. Now what would happen if those wings were to sprout? This probably goes to the extreme with Riku's character but I decided to mark him as a kind of antithesis (and I do mean kind of) to Sora here and you'll see why eventually. Anyway, tune in next time for the aftermath of the asylum as our heroes take some time to recover before heading to their next location.**


	10. Brothers in Arms

Chapter 9

Brothers in Arms

 ** _Grimes Golden Avenue_**

 ** _Braeburn Town, Eden_**

Every year, come fall, the townsfolk of Braeburn Town would pick their famous Braeburn apples off the trees as a way of welcoming in the changing season. Apples were especially a popular product this year around, especially during Halloween when they could be dipped and decorated in many different ways. There were even some contests that thrived on who could make the best tasting and aesthetically pleasing apple. To the Keyblade wielders of Moira's Crescent, it was their home.

Right now they should have been putting up their Halloween decorations, something of an annual celebration to them. They should have been but…

Salome looked out from the balcony, her eyes staring across the street but not really taking anything in. It wasn't very easy to make her depressed, but today especially she was on low energy. Her lack of productivity lay in the absence of two of their members for an indefinite period of time.

The first was Astra, who took off one day without saying a word. All she left behind was a short note saying that she needed some time to figure out who she was. Salome was sure there was more to it than that. She had trained extensively for the day in which she could be together with Luna again and from what she had heard, Luna had chosen to stay by Sora's side instead. If Astra believed that Luna didn't care for her anymore then she was surely mistaken. Rhea, astute as always in her observations of others, had told Salome that for the first time in her life, Luna had found a purpose. She had someone she wanted to protect, and that someone was also the person they had tried to kill on several occasions, and it turned out that her friend happened to be associated with that same group. Well, it was easy to see why they and Astra weren't viewed in the most positive of lights right now.

The second person (who was actually the first to leave) was Kohle, their leader. Like Astra, he too had disappeared without saying anything. Unlike her, he didn't leave a note. The last time she had seen him, he had left a giant bombshell with the whole group. That he had lived far longer than any of them, back to even the days of the old war. He had set up Moira's Crescent with the purposes of making sure something like that dreadful war never happened again. He had failed and it wasn't too hard to see how he blamed himself for that. Did he really believe that he couldn't serve as their leader anymore though?

"You've been awfully quiet, Miss Salome. Is something troubling you?"

Salome turned around to see Desiree standing in the doorway between the balcony and Salome's room with two glasses of root beer in her hands. Salome accepted her drink and sat down on a white plastic chair. Desiree took her seat opposite.

"Kohle and Astra have just disappeared. Just like that. How can that not bother you?" Salome asked.

"That is not quite like you. Usually, you're the one cheering up others. As for why I'm not really concerned, I believe it is because… I know we will see each other again. Once a sheep leaves our flock, it is our job to make sure they find their way back. When they come back, we will be here for them."

"Yeah… yeah, you're right! Thanks, Dessie," Salome said, flashing a warm grin. "Still, this Halloween just won't be the same. Lysander always picks the greatest games for us to play and we all have fun. I mean, we still can this year I guess, but knowing there are some of us who will be missing out kind of takes the fun out of it."

"Let's be quite honest here. If it's not Astra or Kohle, it is usually Jill, so it's not like this hasn't happened before," Desiree said.

Salome giggled. "Hehe, well yeah but Jill's… special."

"Somewhere out there, she probably felt a chill run down her spine from us talking about her," Desiree said, laughing along. "Anyway, Halloween's only a week from now. I know things aren't exactly the best right now but we can't let that stop us from getting out of bed. Get your mind out the gutter and let us make this the best one yet, _non_?"

" _Oui_!" Salome answered with a big grin. "Tell me something. Do you still hate Sora?"

"Hate? That is a strong word. I can't say I ever hated him. I was just doing my job. Still, I will have a rematch with him one day, and when that time comes I'll beat him. Still, there are more pressing matters at hand before I can even think about that. Right now, Sora is not our enemy. Rhea explained it best. He was just in a wrong place at the wrong time."

"What about the search for Xanatos? How's that going so far?"

"I wish I could say fruitful but with no seed the fruit cannot grow, which is to say we have hit a dead end. While Radiant Garden is under lockdown, it is pretty much impossible for us to carry out an extensive search. The first step requires us to take out the people holding that town hostage," Desiree answered, tracing her index finger around the rim of her mug.

"But what I don't understand is why take that town specifically? They're warring with other factions, right? Man, I wish Kohle could have told us more before he left. I am seriously gonna give the guy a piece of my mind when he returns!" Salome snapped.

"I am most looking forward to it. I think I shall join too. But in regards to your previous statement, I have a theory regarding that. You remember the graveyards in that mineshaft where we buried Kyle? It makes sense now why Kohle knew about that place. What if those graves or those of other people who were involved in the Keyblade War? Maybe Kohle even knew some of them, but he didn't say for obvious reasons. Also, I think the group currently in charge of Radiant Garden are searching for something. A secret that the town holds. Underground passageways, hidden rooms, technology within the castle that is more advanced than what else was seen in the town… what does that all point to, if not some sort of secret?"

"Oh, you've got me hooked now. I love love _LOVE_ a good mystery!" Salome exclaimed in awe. "Well, I suppose if there really is a secret to the town then we can't let them find it. I mean, as much as I'd want to see it, it would be kind of dangerous to let whatever that secret is fall into the wrong hands, right?"

"We just need to keep putting pressure on their resources. We have done well so far but eventually we'll have to focus on the other factions so we need to secure Radiant Garden as soon as possible. Alfonso and Vyce think we should start our offensive after the New Year at the earliest. I agree with them. Get it out of the way as soon as we can. I'm not sure of Rhea's opinion on this though and hers is the one that matter seeing as she is interim leader."

"It'll probably be held by vote and I can't imagine anyone would vote against it, maybe me if I felt we weren't ready. I'm just worried the eight of us won't be enough against however many of them there are," Salome said.

Desiree frowned and looked at Salome questioningly. "Did you just count the bird as the eighth member of our group?"

"Jack can fight… I think. Jill would know. Ask her," Salome answered.

"I would but for the fact that she's not here at the moment," Desiree said, wagging a finger. "Jack and Jill… it's like a sick joke."

The two girls spent the rest of the time finishing their drinks in silence before leaving for the foyer. After heading downstairs, they soon arrived at the rec room which was empty except for Alfonso who was on the red round loveseat in the corner reading one of his books and also their bartender.

"You doing alright there, Hookie?" Salome asked sporting a teasing smile.

The former captain of the Jolly Roger barely acknowledged her presence with a grunt in response. Salome felt the method of community service they had decided to offer him rather than just locking him away was doing wonders. He had gone from a sarcastic blabber mouth to suppressive discontent.

"Here you go, my good man. Get it nice and clean," Salome said, holding up the two empty glasses she and Desiree had drunk from. As she was about to set them on the table the glasses shattered in her hands. It took her awhile to comprehend what had just happened. She had been able to piece together that a bright light had hit the glasses just above her hands and following the trajectory she also found her culprit.

"So this is the hideout of Moira's Crescent, huh? Looks like you were right, June," said a middle aged man. He was one of five and possibly more, standing in the entrance hallway.

"It's a pretty sweet hangout, isn't it? And to think you'd choose the same world as that of the Farseers, or what used to be their home anyway," replied a girl in her teens. She had rose colored hair and a face that didn't really look like it could ever be angry, perhaps mischievous at best.

"Who are you?" Alfonso asked from across the room.

"I am General Sabbat and this is my subordinate Lieutenant June Caster. It's a lovely home you have as she said. It's just a shame these will be your last memories here."

As if on cue, Salome saw a brief white light from nearby before she was sent flying from the force of the blast. The air shook and her back hit against the leather couch nearby where she dropped to the floor, her mind going temporarily blank. When she next opened her eyes, they struggled to adjust to a most blurry sight. There was also a ringing sound in her ears as she tried to make out what was going on. Colors of blue, purple and red flew across the room, something which became clear enough for her to label as magic as the seconds poured by.

As her hearing returned, time seemed to go back to normal and she summoned her Keyblade, aiming at a group of Keyblade wielders by the doorway. Casting Fission Firaga, the a fiery blaze shot out of her Keyblade and circled around the group before exploding and taking them out like bowling pins.

She ducked as someone close by swung their Keyblade at her then proceeded to jump and kick the couch. The couch was sent tumbling forward and caused the man to back away. At a tap on the shoulder from behind, he turned around to see Desiree. She smiled sweetly at him before striking.

Salome vaulted over the couch and jointed up with Desiree, back against back. "How did they even find us?"

"Doesn't matter. We need to get the others," Desiree said. Salome was about to reply when she saw Alfonso being slashed across the face. As he fell to the floor, she screamed and darted forward with speed unbefitting of her tiny stature, cutting through the man with ease. She looked over to Alfonso and placed both hands on his face, with her right covering up the wound that was inflicted.

"FONNY! FONNY! Don't leave us!"

"G-get off my face, you moron. It's just a scratch."

"Oh, Fonny, you're alive!" Salome grinned and teasingly petted him on the head, pulling her hand away before he could swat at it. Desiree ran towards them and cast _Reflect_ just as another person came in to attack. Their Keyblade hit against the shield which responded with the proportionate force and sent him flying backwards, smashing into the glass table in the middle of all the couches.

"We need to head upstairs and make sure the others are alright," Desiree said. Salome and Alfonso nodded and sprang into action. Salome led the way, her small and agile body leaping back and forth as she attacked one person after the next. She had always relied more on her shaolin wushu than her actual Keyblade, probably because she felt was more flexible when using her entire body rather than having to account for another piece of mass in her hand. Her movements were like an elegant but deadly dance taught to her by her shifu. The woman who Sabbat had called Caster, having spotted her from a distance, ran forward and decided to play her at her own game. She threw a punch but Salome raised an arm and caught Caster's from below. Pushing her back a bit, she quickly twisted her body and delivered a spinning back heel kick, striking Caster's face and sending her tumbling over the couch.

Before Salome move her arm out of the way, fire magic hit her hand causing her to yelp and grit her teeth. She looked at the woman who threw the spell her way.

"Try that again. I dare you," Salome egged on. When he cast _Firaga_ again, this time she was ready. She quickly erected a _Reflect_ barrier that caught the magic mid-air like a net. She drove a fist forward and smashed through the barrier, punching the fiery blaze right back at its owner.

She felt a hand drag her by the arm away from the scene before she could see what happened to the woman and together she, Desiree and Alfonso made their way up the stairs. As they reached upstairs they heard a fearsome roar from downstairs.

"That… didn't happen to be anyone's stomach perchance?" Desiree asked. The ground underneath their feet rumbled, slowly at first, and then increasingly more frequent with each thunderous footstep they heard. Then they saw him. He was a bulk of a man, shirtless and consisting of all muscle. He was a giant too, probably over 7 feet tall. What's more, there were heavy chains placed around his neck that seemed to rattle with every step he took. He stopped and stared at them.

"I will very much enjoy crushing your tiny heads, fools!" he yelled before starting his ascent towards them.

"We need to keep moving. Come on!" Salome yelled. The trio continued on their way up and quickly reached the second floor where there was already fighting going on. Vyce and Rhea were fending off a few of the home invaders while Lysander was closer to the window battling his own opponent. The blade of Desiree's Keyblade extended in length and travelled in between Rhea and Vyce and their opponents. Swinging to her right, the blade followed and launched their enemies into the wall.

"You two doing alright?" Desiree asked.

"Who the hell are these guys? They came down from the roof. We wouldn't have even noticed if Rhea's hearing hadn't picked it up," Vyce said.

"Oh, it was mere happenstance that I decided to go up to the third floor otherwise I wouldn't have heard it," Rhea said, modest as always.

"Err, guys? A little bit of help here? Unless you're fine with me kicking the bucket, of course. I'd say I'd like to be a star in the sky but those are gone now so…" Lysander managed to say while being pinned against the floor. He looked down to the woman who pressing her arm against his neck and said, "Mind letting up, sweetheart? I'm afraid I'm not into this kind of foreplay."

The girl growled at him. "Do you ever stop talking?"

"He's not known for it," Desiree answered walking up to her. "That said, I'm the only one who gets to abuse him."

Desiree was about to direct her Keyblade at the girl when the bulking giant finally reached the top of the stairs. He yelled out again and punched into the wall repeatedly. His movements were slow at first but his fury seemed to only build with his speed. He gave a final punch and smashed through the wall, sending a large chunk of the wall forward.

Vyce moved quickly and pulled Rhea to the side while Salome and Alfonso had to dive in the opposite direction to avoid the chunk of rock.

"Oh, you're bloody scary, aren't you? Now all you need is a big can of green paint," Alfonso said. "Rhea, Salome, Vyce. Take Desiree and Lysander and get out of here. I'll keep this Neanderthal at bay."

"No… we can't leave you behind," Rhea refused, shaking her head adamantly. She wanted to rush to his side but Vyce held up a hand to block her. "Vyce-"

"Don't worry, he knows what he's doing. Stubborn guys like him don't die easy," Vyce said. "Let's take his advice and get out of here. Lysander, stop clowning around!"

"Oh, gladly," Lysander gave a sarcastic reply. While the girl holding him was distracted by the giant, he pulled the first thing he could think of and head-butted her, sending her to the floor. "Sorry. I don't usually do that. Hope you can forgive me!"

"Shut up, you sorry excuse of man, and come along," Desiree snapped, before turning on her heel and following the others.

"Yes, ma'am," Lysander obeyed. As the giant tried to stop them, Alfonso materialized his Keyblade and parried the fist.

"Your fight is with me, you dullard. You keep your eyes on me," Alfonso said. What happened with them next, Salome didn't know. She had worked with Alfonso the most out of them all though so she could say without a doubt that she trusted he knew what he was doing. Moving past him, Salome and the others climbed and climbed until they reached the third floor. The floor tremored violently underneath their feet and the lights were flickering on and off as dust poured in through the ceiling. It seemed that they weren't just being attacked from below, but above as well.

The group soon arrived in the study, a weird choice of destination if they were looking to escape. Salome frowned and looked around.

"What are we doing here?" she asked.

"You don't think Kohle didn't plan ahead, do you?" Rhea replied with a small smile. "Vyce, could you pull out the second book to the left on Bookcase C, third row, please."

Vyce hummed his understanding and walked over, crouching low to get a better view of the book. All books were categorized starting from surname and each shelf had a specific theme to it. Bookcase C contained books on fictional literature collected over a multitude of worlds, some of which Salome had read before and many more that she would never be able to read now. Everything seemed perfectly ordered and relevant save for one book.

"Cooking for Dummies?" Vyce asked.

"That's the one," Rhea confirmed. After Vyce removed the book as instructed there was a clicking side followed by the bookcase sliding outwards and to the left, obscuring Bookcase B. Where the bookcase used to be was a large gap between the floor and the wall, with a service shaft that went down for what appeared to be a while. Try as she might, Salome could not see a bottom.

"Will Alfonso know which book to pick?" Desiree asked.

"He already knows. His attention to detail is truly fascinating. The very first time he came to the study room, he noted the pattern of the shelves without Kohle or I even having to tell him and realized the exception to the rule, as it were," Rhea told them.

"But, I mean… it's a cook book," Lysander pointed out.

"No one goes for the cook book, especially not this one. I'm surprised no one else actually noticed. Even if I didn't know it was there, at least I have an excuse," Rhea said, pointing to her eyes.

"It does make for a pretty good explanation as to why the majority of us can't cook save for Lysander, Alfonso and Jill," Desiree said. "Anyway, enough dilly dallying. Let's keep going before they catch us."

"Rhea, you need help?" Vyce asked.

Rhea shook her head. "I'll be alright, thank you. You all go first."

Each person took turns climbing down the ladder with Salome first. A few ways down she heard yelling coming from above. Their attackers knew where they were. Because of this urgency, Salome tried to move faster. Suddenly an explosion larger than all the others rocked the building and Salome felt her perspective shifting slightly.

"Dammit! These assholes wanna take the entire building down to take us out!" Vyce yelled from somewhere above her.

"Fonny won't be able to come down here," Salome said.

"Less worrying about 'Fonny', more worrying about us! I can't help but think this ladder won't hold for much longer," Lysander said.

"Lysander, I swear, you-"

"Guys, shush," Rhea quietened them. Anxiously, they all waited for Rhea's judgement. Unfortunately when she next spoke, there was a tinge of fear and horror in her voice. "We need to jump… NOW!"

"Wait, what? All the way do-"

Rhea cut Desiree off. "Don't argue, just do it."

Salome closed her eyes and let go, screaming as she picked up speed. Despite the wind whipping her face, she managed to open her eyes to see an overflow of water rushing towards them from above. The water was fast. Much faster than them. It soon engulfed Salome, dragging he senses into the unknown. She was powerless to control her freefall, because there was a force of immeasurable pressure slamming against her.

She was overwhelmed, but somewhere in that torrent of madness, a single thought remained. She was in the rice fields near her home and her mother and father were talking. Father was telling mother about his decision to leave for the imperial city. There he would serve under the Emperor's army to counter the invading Hun forces.

 _Father… why did you leave us? Why didn't you come back when mother need you most?_

Her father, or a white silhouette of someone who looked like him, soon disappeared from her mind. He was soon followed by her mother and eventually, there was only the darkness and Salome in the middle.

* * *

 ** _The Gardens, Castle Grounds_**

 ** _North Eastern France_**

Two days had passed since the group had escaped from the asylum when Xion woke up. Her inflictions proved worse than Riku's, being that she found it difficult to walk. As such, she had to stay in bed for a while until she recovered. Luna and took turns, coming in the morning, lunch and evening to deliver her meals and keep her company until Xion was finished. Each time Sora saw her, he couldn't bring himself to talk with her about Roxas. To see Xion's cheerful smile, it felt wrong to suddenly mention it and besides, Sora wasn't all too sure he was ready to talk about it himself. However, beneath the surface of Xion's smile lay someone much more troubled than she was willing to admit to three. It wasn't until two days later that they realized that.

The castle gardens covered roughly seven thousand acres of land all carefully and meticulously manicured and dressed to be stylized, consisting of fountains with baby cupids on their tops and completely symmetrical parterre that formed intricate patterns. Sora couldn't even begin to imagine how much care was needed to take care of something like this.

"I'm proud of you, Sora. You've finally become a man," Riku said to him upon hearing that Sora and Luna had gotten together.

"I don't need your gratification. Besides, you were a lot more popular than me back in school and you shunned every single girl that ever came up to you. Well, except Kairi of course."

"Well, I can't say I was ever interested in any of them."

Sora stifled a laugh. "Really? Not even Cathy?"

"No, not even Caffeine Cathy," Riku said letting out a laugh. "Hey, Sora. I want you to know something. I know we're friends but you've always been like a brother to me. You've always been there for me, even when I haven't for you. So, thank you."

"Really, Riku? There's no need to thank me. It's just natural. Still, I'm happy to hear you feel that way," Sora said.

"Hmph, well, you know. I'm not usually the kind of person to wear my emotions on my sleeve but, if not now, then when, right?" Riku told him. Sora nodded and he focused his attention back on what was in front of him.

"This is something I could get used to. We never had anything like this back on the islands," he said to Riku as the two started down the pathway towards the fountain in the middle. "We're always passing through so you never get the time to just stop and take it all in. Now that I'm here though, I'm looking at it and it is beautiful. That's the kind of world I want after this is all over. A world in which you, me, Luna and Kairi can live in peacefully. And sometimes I can't help but wonder, is that too much to ask? Will there ever be a day when we can say with certainty that we don't need to fight anymore?"

"Even if that never does come to pass, I'd much rather continue to fight if it meant others didn't have to in our place. I have nothing to go back to anyway," Riku said.

"Oh, don't be like that, Riku. You have friends to come back to," Sora said.

"That's not what I meant. I just get the feeling that, by the end of this, I won't be me anymore."

"What does that mean?"

Riku stopped in his tracks and looked down at the ground. "We have to face the fact that this isn't our world anymore, Sora. We're at war and people change in war. Sora, if doing so could end all this suffering, would you be able to kill?"

"I-" Sora paused. Not even the peaceful gardens could vanquish the sour mood that their conversation had turned to. "You can't bring up something like that all of a sudden. I don't want to think about that right now."

"But you'll have to. When someone's in danger and being held by one of them, hesitate for even a fraction of a second and you're showing weakness. Those people, they come from the past and they're meddling with the present—our present. We've fought so hard to be together. We fought for the future that _we_ wanted. We fought to resist the change of those who would disturb that future. Every single time, we emerged victorious. Maybe it was bound to happen sooner or later, that something would come back to bite us, but not like this. Our futures have outright been stolen from us and dragged through the mud to add insult to injury." As Riku's eye left the ground and returned to Sora, the brunette could see a mixture of anger and pain behind his bluish green eyes. "That's why I'm no longer afraid. I'll be whatever I need to be in order to take back our world. Light. Darkness. I'll play my role. I won't let everything we were, everything we are right now, be washed away. Our story will continue, and theirs will end. Sora, you remember what we said when we were on that beach in the dark realm after we defeated Xemnas? We'd be the darkness, the other side."

"Riku, that was so long ago and when I said it then, I didn't mean it in the context of now. This hatred… let it go, Riku. It's not worth it. We've already seen what hatred can do to people and I don't want it to happen to you," Sora urged.

"I can't. If you were there in that torture with Xion and me, you would understand why I can't let this go. For anything else, I would be willing to agree with you, but this… I can't forgive. That's why I'm telling you now, Sora. I might not be the person you know once this is all over. Heck, you might not even be you once this is done."

"Riku, if you're doing this for revenge, then I can't be a part of that," Sora said. Was there no possible way he could make his friend see reason? From his words, Sora ascertained that Riku was willing to throw away all his happiness to go after this man… no, if what Riku had told him on the Gummi Ship was anything to go by then his 'war' wouldn't end there either.

"I thought you might say that. It's not you, right? Don't worry about it too much. I'm not going to get you caught up in my revenge. That said, I would reconsider where you stand in this war if I were you, Sora. Like it or not, it's hard to see us coming away with our hands completely clean."

"I'd be foolish to expect that," Sora started when he was cut off by Luna running towards them. Upon seeing a look of shock on her face, Sora frowned and asked, "Is something wrong?"

Luna nodded. "I- I went to Xion's room as usual to give breakfast to her. When I opened the door, she wasn't there! I checked with the other servants and they haven't seen her at all and… her window was open. What if…"

"And in her condition she's not fit to go anywhere yet," Sora said, looking to Riku.

"Damn it, Xion…" Riku muttered.

* * *

 ** _The Dark Woods, Near the Castle_**

Xion was hurting. Her muscles ached, her legs barely wanted to move. All the same, Xion persisted. She persisted in spite of the fact that she was clearly not ready to move again. Xion looked skyward to the trees that towered above her. Her hands reached out for the low hanging branches, a grimace appearing on her face as she wrapped her hand around the rough woody texture.

She pulled herself up, putting strenuous effort on her body. Her head reached past the branch and she tried to pull the rest of her head up until her chin was above the branch.

 _Snap!_

The branch broke away from the tree and Xion hit the ground along with it. Her head fell back on the leafy forest floor and she stared up at the sky. Extending her hand forward, she tried summoning her Keyblade. No dice. Then again, she had already tried several times before so she wasn't sure why she was expecting any different this time.

"What's wrong with me?" she asked herself aloud. She could only ever recall once in her life where she been unable to use her Keyblade, but it wasn't quite the same situation. Everything had been working well before the asylum so she could only assume that whatever was stopping her from using it had occurred within the last two months, during her captivity. She felt tears well up in her eyes and she did little to hold them back. The air was musky and the ground damp from recent rainfall, but even knowing this, even watching from her bed as the rain droplets hit against the glass, she would still have preferred to be outside in it than inside feeling ashamed of herself.

At this point, some semblance of reason returned to Xion and she began to question what she was even doing. It was around time for breakfast now and Luna had no doubt come to deliver her food. They were probably scrambling and scurrying around the castle trying to find her right now and no doubt they were all worrying about her. After being treated by them, was this really how she would end up repaying them? And Riku… Xion had not seen Riku since the asylum. It wasn't that she couldn't see him. In fact, Riku had tried to make several visits during her tenure at the castle. No, it was more that she didn't want to see him. She couldn't bear to face him or talk to him after everything Janus had made her do to him. Even thinking his name pushed images she would rather not recall into her mind. That said, for the help and support they gave her she should turn back. She should definitely turn back.

She wiped away the tears and slowly stood up to account for the pain in her joints. She was about to turn around and head for the castle when it happened. There was a figure in the distance, human in shape, looking back at her. They were too far to make out anything distinctive about them but she could tell that they were definitely looking at her.

She tried to call out to them, but her voice was frozen in her throat. The figure made the first move instead, by turning away from her and disappearing behind the trees. Xion felt compelled to follow. She set off, the castle far off in her mind at that moment. Her legs hurt but she pushed on with more conviction now than ever before. Of course, it had occurred to her that it could have easily been a trap. And yet she couldn't help but feel familiarity in all this.

Deeper and deeper into the woods she went until only the peak of the castle's towers loomed behind her. What she eventually found within the dark woods was not the person she was looking for but a swirl of energy, like a vortex of pure light illuminating the surrounding area. Curiosity abound, Xion stepped forward and reached out for the swirling light.

* * *

 **A/N: So this chapter was about Moira's Crescent, but at least you got to see a little bit of the aftermath following the asylum. So with Xion unaccounted, what will Sora, Luna and Riku do next? Just where did Xion go? What's the fate of Alfonso and the other Moira's Crescent members? Just what happened to James Hook for that matter? At least half of these questions will be answered next time on Paved With Gold. Thanks for reading!**


	11. Shibuya Calling

**A/N: Another chapter, another world and by the title you can probably guess which one that is. I'm still waiting for that sequel, Square. Also, to the review asking whether we'll be seeing the return of certain characters once thought 'gone', I can't reply personally to your review since you're a guest but I'll neither confirm nor deny that. I'll allow you to interpret that however you will. For now though, let's start off with the conclusion of Beast's Castle.**

* * *

Chapter 10

Shibuya Calling

From the East Wing to the West, from the gardens to beyond the castle's safety, Sora, Luna, Riku, Prince Adam and Belle searched and searched throughout the day for their missing friend, but it became clear by evening that any further effort would be meaningless. Xion was gone. Missing. Like she had never been there in the first place.

Riku wrapped his hands on the bars of the gates leading to the courtyard and shook it violently. "Why would she do something like this?"

"Maybe something bad happened to her. Like she was kidnapped or something," Sora suggested.

"You know that's not possible. She didn't leave by the door and the windows to her room can only be opened from inside. It doesn't look like there were any signs of forced entry either so unless Xion willingly let her kidnapper in through the window then no, she climbed out," Riku barked.

"If she really did this of her own accord then she must have been suffering inside. She probably felt like she couldn't confide with us what she really felt. I knew there was something about her smile. It seemed unnatural. I don't think anyone that traumatised by the things she's gone through should be able to smile like that right of the bat. She was doing it to make us happy, even when she wasn't," Luna said, looking down at the ground in front of her. "I should have said something to her sooner but I didn't bring up. I couldn't bring myself to bring it up because… if she didn't want to remember-"

"Luna, you can't blame yourself. You were being considerate, as any good person would be," Belle said.

"Right. These things take time. Maybe she felt she just needed to be by herself for a while to figure things out," Adam agreed.

"True, but even so… to leave without even a word? It makes me really anxious. Riku, what exactly happened in that asylum?" Sora asked.

"That's not exactly something I want to talk about," Riku said. His eyes rested on the courtyard and he rested his forehead against the cool iron bars. "This is where Xion and I first met. It wasn't under the best of circumstances. At the time I wondered why she had your Keyblade and it was only through fighting her that I realized it wasn't yours."

"That was back when she was in the Organization, right?" Sora asked.

"Yeah. Sora, Xion can't look at me. She doesn't want to talk to me. What if she left because… because she doesn't want to be around me?"

"Riku, that's not like you," Sora muttered.

"To be honest with you, I don't really know who me is right now," Riku murmured. His voice was weak and he seemed defeated. Sora was about to reply when sparkles popped into existence like fizzing bubbles. The sparkles soon disappeared to reveal the Blue Fairy.

"Ma'am, what are you doing here?" Sora asked. Riku turned around upon hearing Sora speak to someone else to see her.

"Ah, you must be Riku. It's always a pleasure to meet one of Sora's friends. I am the Blue Fairy," she introduced. A frown appeared on her face. "Dear, what ever happened to your eye?"

"It's nothing. It's a pleasure to meet you too," Riku said with a nod.

 _It's hardly nothing. Dude, you lost an eye. Don't go acting all cool_ , Sora thought with mild annoyance. He thought he had briefly caught sight of the Blue Fairy glancing at him and chuckling, if only for a split second. She couldn't possibly have… no, Sora must have imagined it.

"Anyway, I take it your mission has been successful?" the Blue Fairy asked.

"Not exactly. We did rescue Riku and Xion but we think Xion's run off. We've searched all day but we can't find her anywhere inside or around the castle," Luna informed her.

This information left a ponderous look on the Blue Fairy's face. "I see… that is troubling indeed. Well, we can only hope your friend is somewhere safe. You imagine that she couldn't have gotten too far but if you've been searching for a good while now, I imagine it would be difficult to find her. I do wish I could do something to help but I'm not quite sure what I could do in this situation."

"It's alright. You don't have to stress out over it. Like you said, we can only hope Xion's safe. We'll probably do a bit of scouting in the village tomorrow morning before we leave to see if anyone's seen her," Sora said.

"Leave?" Luna asked. "Where are we going?"

"Well, I think it's about time we go see Neku, Coco and the others… and _him_ ," Sora said.

"Shibuya it is then," Luna said with a laugh. Refraining from saying Joshua's name had become something of an in-house joke for Sora and Luna, though neither of them were quite sure what feelings would surface when they finally met again. She turned her attention to Riku. "Are you coming along, Riku?"

"Sorry. I have something of my own I need to do first," Riku said. He seemed to be purposefully avoiding Sora's gaze.

"Riku… you can't you're-"

"I'm going after Janus," Riku said.

"By yourself? Riku, are you insane? Don't do this," Sora said.

"Think of me what you will. You told me those people working for him mentioned Middleton, right? Then that's where I'm headed. I won't let him get away. I won't let him harm innocent people like he did back in Belle's hometown. The least I can do to help you guys is keeping him and his goons off your tail anyway. I'll be chaos and you'll be harmony. Do what you need to do, Sora."

Sora didn't know what to say or even if he should say anything at all. Riku seemed satisfied with the silence however and smiled. Did he feel the need to smile to show Sora that he was still his old self, or was he doing it for his own assurances? Was Sora thinking too much about this? Probably, but there was cause for concern. When they next crossed paths, how well would either of them be able to smile?

It was because Sora feared he would never see a smile like this again, whether Riku was faking it or not, that he pushed his doubts to the side and forced a smile back. It hurt to be so aware of how fake it was.

* * *

 ** _Braeburn Town, Eden_**

From the hill they were on, it looked like the sky was on fire. Orange flames reflected across the sky and beneath, thick smoke poured from the rubble that had once been the headquarters of Moira's Crescent. From afar, June Caster could see people starting to arrive on the scene. She turned back and walked over to her superior, General Sabbat, who was hunched over the surviving member of Moira's Crescent.

"So how does it feel to lose the ones you care for? Excruciating, isn't it?" Sabbat asked, placing a hand on Alfonso's bloody cheek. "Whatever you were hoping for, be it wanting to play the hero or perhaps you chose then and there to relish in some sort of sense of self-righteousness, just stop. You don't have to put on a brave face. Only one in ten thousand of us in this world can be shepherds. You and I are but one of many that follows the will of those shepherds. Without them, this world will inevitably consume itself as it almost did once before. Master Irva is one of those shepherds. He will guide us into the future this world truly desires. And what about you and your ilk? Where are your friends now? Do they lead this world as Master Irva does? No, your friends are dead. If you wish to join them, I will not grant you that escape. That is up to the Master. You will meet him, and you will learn that the beliefs that you've long since held are nought but lies, deceptions you've told yourself out of belief you could lead the many towards salvation."

Alfonso shut his eyes tightly and clenched his teeth. June frowned and looked up at Sabbat.

"Stop taunting him, Sabbat. I think he's suffered enough," Caster said.

"Getting soft, eh, Caster? Scum like him don't deserve pity."

"Scum like him are the very people we've vowed to protect. We don't shame them, we help them. It seems that through your entire length as general, you yourself have yet to learn or respect Irva's will," June said. She stepped up to Alfonso and placed two fingers on his shoulder, smiling at him as she did so. "I hear… you have an attention for detail. One far beyond most. Perhaps you can find what we cannot."

"And why would I help you with that?" Alfonso asked lukewarmly.

"I'm sure we'll find a way to convince you," June replied. She looked over to the other knights nearby and nudged her head. "Oh, you can get rid of the other guy. Might as well."

" _Noooooooo!_ Please, anything, ANYTHING but that!" Hook pleaded. He scurried over to June and latched onto her legs with both arms, crying out. "I'm not with them. I was held prisoner by them. I'll do anything ye ask so please spare me."

June sighed. "Well this is annoying. General, what do we do?"

"Why ask me? Just so you know, if you do decide to take him with us, he's your responsibility," Sabbat said.

"You've got me in a bit of a pickle there," June said, rubbing her temple. She looked down at Alfonso and asked, "He said you held him prisoner? What did you do with him?"

"Can't say I care to answer that," Alfonso said, hiding his smile by lowering his head.

"Hmm. Fine, you can come along with us. I'll let you sort out all the paperwork I guess," June said.

"I can't decide if that's a promotion or a demotion," Hook murmured.

"Was that complaining I heard?"

"N-no, ma'am. Aye, paperwork it is," Hook answered quickly. He let go of June's leg and stood up, extending his hook. "I think this will be the start of a prosperous endeavour, wouldn't ye say? Maybe you can even help me get back me ship after all is said and done."

"I can't see that happening but who knows. I've been surprised before," June remarked.

Meanwhile, a few feet below street level, Salome allowed herself to take air into her lungs after being swallowed whole by the rushing waters that had attacked them as they were climbing down. She couldn't say that she wasn't happy that she had taken the faster way down, but still, it had been too close for her liking.

"Well, that was enough water rides for a lifetime. I'm thoroughly satisfied, and soaked," Lysander's voice came from behind her.

"This coming from a boy who apparently doesn't understand what a hosepipe ban is during the dry season. I'd say you had this coming for a while," Desiree said. "I only wish I had not been dragged down with you. Ugh, this stench! I will just die if I can't get this out of my clothes and hair."

"Urgh, aren't you exaggerating just the tiniest bit?" Lysander asked.

"Fair point. I will kill you instead," replied Desiree with a simple smile.

"Er- no, t-that's not quite what I meant," Lysander retracted, his face a tinge of discomfort.

"Hey, you guys. Rhea's not doing so well," Vyce called to them. Salome moved along with Desiree and Lysander and arrived in front of Rhea. She wasn't unconscious but she wasn't doing all too well either. Of everyone who had been engulfed by the flood, Rhea was the only one of them who had sustained an injury. A trickle of blood poured down from her right temple, not a particularly bad injury but still nasty to look at.

"I'm sorry, I think I hit my head against the ladder on the way down," Rhea said.

"Why in the world are you sorry for that? How do you feel?" Desiree asked.

"A bit lightheaded… and soaked," Rhea answered, letting a small chuckle escape at the end.

"Here, I'll help you up," Vyce said. As he reached to help her up, loud footsteps in numerous quantities that weren't theirs echoed across the tunnel walls from behind them.

"Do you think they've followed us down here?" Salome asked.

"Probably want to make sure they've finished the job. Keep moving, I've got Rhea," Vyce crouching low so Rhea could climb onto his back. Salome exchanged a quick look with Desiree before starting to move again. They had barely even recovered and they were already running for their lives again.

* * *

 ** _104 Building, Shibuya_**

The Gummi Ship trembled as Sora slowly stared it around the ward of Shibuya. Being the massive urban district it was with a dense population, Sora found it difficult to land the Gummi Ship anywhere that wouldn't attract attention.

"Think we can land one of these rooftops, because otherwise I don't see how we're even going to land," Sora said.

"Well if you do, I expect we'll have a lovely view of the area. This place is breathtaking. I'm not sure what I was expecting but it wasn't this," Luna said.

"It's good when you can't expect things I find. Makes it more fun," Sora said. As he scanned the many buildings for a place to land, he finally found one in a building near a busy scramble crossing called the 104 Building. "Alright, I'll land over on the building over there."

The Gummi Ship slowly moved towards the building's roof until it was idle, and then Sora lowered it onto solid ground. He flicked off the engines and exited the ship with Luna to greet the cold morning air.

"Nothing like the outdoor air," Sora said, exaggerating his stretches.

"You know, I've just realized something. How exactly are we supposed to find Joshy-boy? This is a pretty big place," Luna asked.

"Well I'm certainly not in any rush. It's good to finally see one place that doesn't look like it's been invaded," Sora answered. "I'm wondering more about how we're gonna find Neku and the others."

A sudden vibration in Sora's left pocket where his PHS was caused him to jump slightly. He cautiously went into his pocket and pulled out the phone, staring at it intently. On the screen were three simple words followed by a smiley face.

 _Welcome to Shibuya :-)_

"Err, Luna?" Sora called for her. He was sure it wasn't anything to fear and yet for some reason he was still absolutely terrified. The device had never even done something like this before.

Luna peered over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow. "That's a thing, huh?"

"What do I do?" Sora asked.

"Um, reply to it?" Luna replied.

"Right. Of course. Reply… err, let's see," Sora murmured, fumbling around with the device away from Luna's eyes. He soon figured out the basics and began replying:

 _Who is this?_

A simple reply to a strange message. Satisfied, Sora pressed the send button and stared at the screen in anticipation. An ellipsis followed which shortly disappeared and became another string of characters.

 _A friend ;-) If want to meet them, come to Hachiko's statue._

"Them? And what's Hachiko's statue?" Luna asked. Sora shrugged and replied to the message, asking about these things. They waited for about a minute but no reply came. Luna slumped back disappointedly. "That's a bummer. Looks like our mystery person likes to make things as ambiguous as possible. So should we do as they say?"

"Not like we have any choice. But first, let's find a way down from here," Sora said. He and Luna started their search and it was not long before they found a roof access door that would lead down. Sora unlocked the door and they headed down the stairs, leading to a narrow walkway with a door just up ahead. Hearing the sound of loud crowd noises coming from the other side of the door, Sora unlocked the hatch and slowly pushed the door open, creating a wide enough gap that he and Luna could slip through.

They were in a department store with many of the shops selling fashionwear ranging from many different brands. There was a recurring motif that they did notice however as they went from store to store.

"Everything's so-"

"CUTE! It's so cute, oh wow, Sora, check these boots out!" Luna squealed, running towards the shoe store next to them where a pair of white combat boots with black laces had caught her eye.

"And my nightmare begins," Sora croaked to himself, rubbing at the bridge of his nose, hoping that he could somehow attain powers of invisibility.

" _Irasshaimase_ , I see you happen to be interested in those shoes there. They are beautiful, aren't they? I have a pair at home," said a female assistant, her eyes glimmering in delight. "And… yep, they would look absolutely amazing on a beautiful girl like yourself."

"Beautiful? Oh, no. I'm just average, really," Luna said shyly.

"No no no! You mustn't think like that, though I'm sure your handsome boyfriend over there has already told you that plenty of times," the woman said in an annoyingly cheerful voice.

 _Don't bring me into this_ , Sora thought as he turned around to look elsewhere. It seemed the demographic that frequented this department was mainly young women. It wasn't much of a stretch, then, to assume that Luna was going out with him.

"That's sweet of you. How much are they?" Luna asked, holding up the boots.

"2,000 munny."

"Hmm. I'll take it!"

"Excellent! Will your boyfriend be paying?"

Sora's eyes grew big. "What?"

"Oh, Sora, dear, would you be a sweetheart and help me pay for these?" Luna asked in a sing-song tone.

Sora spun around. " _What?_ "

"Come on, Sora. The least you could do is treat your girlfriend every once in a while. I know I'd just find it adorable if you did," Luna said, stepping her game up by batting her eyelids at him.

"You devilish little-" Sora caught himself however upon seeing the store assistant stare expectantly at him. He had been trapped. Reluctantly, he gave a nod and took out his money pouch to pay. The sales assistant soon disappeared into the stockroom and returned with a box containing the boots which she put into a bag for them.

"Thank you, have a great day!" waved the sales assistant as they left.

"Wow, she sure was lovely, huh?" Luna asked.

"Right. Yeah. Sure," Sora said, feeling more than a little dead inside.

Luna laughed and playfully pinched his cheek. "Aw, I'm sorry. I just wanted to have a bit of fun. Hey, do you mind waiting while I head back to the Gummi Ship to change into these. I don't want to be carrying a bag around the entire time I'm here after all."

"Sure, but you owe me one," Sora said. Luna smiled before heading off back for the door to the roof. When she next appeared in front of Sora, she was in her new boots that matched well with her polka dot dress.

"How do I look?" Luna asked.

"Your debt is repaid," Sora said evoking a giggle from Luna. Sora moved in and quickly linked arms with her. When she looked at him in surprise, he grinned. "There. How's that for stopping you from running off to another store and making us broke."

"You drive a hard bargain there, Sora. But I guess I'm willing to go along for now," Luna replied. With that, they both set off to the pumping music that engulfed the entirety of the building. The interior of the building was like a conveyor belt in design, seeming to spiral upwards like a coil all the way up to the eighth floor. Rather than going through opposing human traffic, Sora and Luna decided to take the elevator all the way down to the first floor in order to leave the building.

After walking for a minute down the street, they arrived at a scramble crossing filled with the hustle and bustle of people going to and fro. The number of people crossing, be it those in business attire, teenagers or just the average person in general was quite mesmerizing. This was not the only thing that was striking, as Sora took in the buildings surrounding them, taking in their height, their many advertisements and finally their closeness to each other. It was all too much for him to take in.

"Sora, breathe," Luna said, chuckling at him.

"Huh? Oh, sorry. Guess I got carried away for moment," Sora said. "I uh- I think I need to sit down for a moment."

"It's a lot to take in, isn't it? Why don't we get a photo in while we're here? I kind of want to show this to Aunt Kit when I see her again," Luna said. Sora nodded and got in close to her. He made sure part of the crossing was behind them with its myriad of people before taking the shot. He took a separate shot of the 104 Building in the background before putting the phone back in his pocket.

"Alright, so how do we find Hachiko?" Sora asked.

"We ask, I suppose," Luna said. As they were about to start walking, Luna caught sight of something and tapped Sora on the shoulder. Sora turned to where she was pointing to see someone wearing a gas mask and handing out leaflets.

"The end is upon us! We must all pray for our salvation. The stars have died out because of our reckless abandon of consuming resources that harm this world. The government allows big companies to release these poisonous toxins into the atmosphere and we are all now seeing its effects. The next time the government says it's serving on behalf of us, ask if we ever asked for the stars to die out!"

"Looks like the ball of yarn is unravelling even over here. Keep on keepin' on guys," Sora said.

"People are going to be people. Whether anyone believes or not is up to them. Of course, from how many people are avoiding her, she doesn't seem to be having much success so far," Luna said. "But whatever actually caused the stars to disappear is definitely something to worry about. We need to do whatever we can to bring them back."

"Well, at least we know we won't be asking her about Hachiko," Sora said. The two of them ended up asking a couple by the names of Sota and Nao (who apparently preferred to be called Nao-Nao for short) who helpfully pointed them towards their destination.

"You just keep heading that way and you'll come 'cross a statue that looks like a dog, you hear me, dawg?" Sota asked.

"Err, yeah. Thanks… dawg?" Sora replied.

"Hey, you guys are, like, tourists or whatever, right?" Nao asked. Sora almost laughed out loud. She had the same valley girl accent as Coco did. "So, like, do you know the story of Hachiko?"

"No, do tell us more," Luna encouraged with a beam.

"So for a decade, this dog, Hachiko, waited on his master in front of Shibuya Station every single day. Unfortunately, his master had passed away but poor Hachi didn't know that. In the end, it was his loyalty to his master that, like, totally earned him celebrity status here. That's why the surrounding area where the statue is is called Hachiko Square," Nao explained.

"Aw, that's such a heart-warming and yet sad tale at the same time. I'd love to meet Hachiko," Luna said.

"Yeah. I guess, in a way, Hachiko's kind of now eternally looking over the town. His gift for being so loyal," Sora said.

"So pure of heart, man. Most people nowadays can learn a thing or two from him," Sota agreed, almost like he was about to tear up.

"Now, now, Sota. It's like Luna says. He is so, like, looking down on us with that faithful smile of his right now," Nao comforted.

"Well, we better head off. Thanks for helping," Sora said.

"Oh man, I almost forgot. We gotta move if we wanna catch The Prince. Let's hurry to Molco, Nao," Sota said, taking hold of Nao's hand and setting off with her in the opposite direction.

"Don't be strangers, 'kay?" Nao yelled before they disappeared into the crowds.

"Well, weren't they a lively carefree pair," Luna commented with a grin.

"Ha, I wish we had that luxury. Well, time to be going ourselves," Sora said.

Shibuya Station was to the north-west of the Scramble Crossing and Hachiko's statue adjacent to it. It was just below this bronze statue of the dog that Sora and Luna were easily able to identify the 'them' that the text had mentioned.

"Luna! Sora!" Rhyme was the first to point out. Everyone else turned around at the mention of their names. Rhyme, Beat, Shiki, Coco and Neku, their friends from a year ago were all there to greet them.

"This is like a dream! It's so good to see you guys again," Luna said, throwing her arms open as Shiki ran into them.

"I was wondering when I'd see you again. How are things going, Luna?" Shiki asked.

"Awesome! Guess what?" Luna leaned in and whispered something into Shiki's ear. Her eyes seemed to brighten up at this and she looked at Sora.

"Wow! Congrats, Sora. You better treat her right, okay?"

"Haha, it's good to see you too, Shiki," Sora said. When he felt something latch around his arm, he looked down to see a beaming Coco dressed in a cute pink and blue dress. Like last time, Coco liked wearing her bear ears hoodie over her head. "Are you ever going to take that off?"

"Hehe, Sora, I thought you totally promised me we were going to marry one day. What a bummer," Coco said.

"Yo, Spikes, crushing on little girls? Nah man, that- that ain't right," Beat said with a wary look on his face.

"Now hold on, _Daisukenojo Bito_ , yeah I remember your name, I promised no such thing," Sora hurriedly said, hoping to avoid whatever warning glare was on Luna's face at the moment.

"You so did," Coco shot back.

"No, I didn't."

"Oh. Must have been in my dreams then. Oopsie," Coco said, sticking her tongue out.

"You've been… dreaming about me? Wait, on second thought, don't want to know." Sora brushed it off before looking at Neku.

"You cut your hair?" Neku asked.

"There goes Neku stating the obvious, the genius," Shiki murmured, causing Luna to laugh.

"Well, you know how moms are," Sora said.

"It looks good on you. You look more mature," Neku said. He walked up and raised his hand, meeting Sora's in a clasp of hands.

"So why are you guys here? We were told by someone anonymous that we were supposed to meet her for some reason," Rhyme said, showing Sora and Luna her phone. Her message read:

 _Hachiko's is the place to be if you want to see them ;-)_

"Same here. I'd ask for some idea as to who it was but I think I can guess," Sora said, showing them the texts he was sent.

"You think the same then? It has to be. If we're talking about someone who knows of our connection the only other person who was with us during the Reapers' Game was the mastermind, Joshua," Rhyme concluded.

"Man, that's whack. I don't wanna feel like I owe Joshua of all people somethin' and yet he brought us together. Argh, I'm so conflicted!" Beat threw his hands back and clutched his head as if he were in pain.

"Where is he anyway?" Sora asked.

"Not sure. We haven't seen him ever since Traverse Town. We've searched for him, irregularly mind you since we all had lives waiting for us, but every now and then we'd come together and search Shibuya and not once did we find anything," Rhyme told them.

"What's he playing at? He says he needs to see us and when we arrive, he just hides away," Sora said.

"Well, I'm just glad we got to see you guys again. Let's find somewhere to eat and talk there. I'm starving! How does ramen sound to start of your Shibuya experience proper? Dogenzaka's the best place for restaurants and other shops during the day, and in the night it dramatically transforms into an entertainment mecca. You'd have to see it to believe it," Shiki said. "So off to Ramen Don we go. Neku's paying!"

Neku reached out as Shiki took off down the road. "Hey! I never agreed to… that."

"Aw, Neku, you're too kind," Luna played along, giving him a cheeky grin before skipping off to join Shiki and the others.

"People. I just don't get them," Neku said. Despite his words, he seemed to have a small smile on his face. Sora grinned at this and together, the two of them hurried up to join their friends.


	12. The Final Game

**A/N: So it seems like Drive Forms are back in KH3 but in a very different way. I'm looking forward to hearing more as we near the 15th anniversary of the series. And, holy mother of pearl, that 0.2 opening *drools*. MUST HAVE GAME NOW! Anyway, while we wait for more developments from the official canon story, there's always fanfiction to tide you over so here's more Paved With Gold to satisfy your needs. Time for Sora and Luna to confront Joshua. What news will he have for them? Find out... right now!**

* * *

Chapter 11

The Final Game

 ** _Ramen Don, Dogenzaka_**

 ** _Shibuya_**

Setting his empty plate of Tonkotsu Ramen down, Sora stretched his arms and let out a satisfied sigh. It was still hard to believe, even for him, but he had just experienced one of the best dishes he had ever had the joy of experiencing. From the creaminess of the pork tasting broth to the smooth texture of the noodles as they slid down his throat, Sora couldn't really think of anything that compared to it. Put simply, once he started he found he couldn't stop eating.

"Okay, I think there's something in this ramen. Way too good to be true," Sora said to the others.

The owner of the restaurant, Ken Doi, walked up to their table, folding his arms and looking quite proud. "Haha, you better believe. Made with a lot of love and care for my favorite customers and their guests."

"I somehow doubt it was just that but I'll be happy to go along with it," Sora said.

"You in the mood for seconds?"

"Oh, no, we couldn't. I'm already full enough as it is. Anymore and I'd probably burst," Rhyme replied chirpily.

"Yeah, afraid I'm going to have to decline as well. But thanks anyway. I loved every second of it," Sora said.

"Of course. Just be sure to call me if you need anything," Ken Doi said before returning to the kitchen. Admittedly, this came as a blessing to Sora. It wasn't that he was annoying in any way, but the topic they had been discussing previously had not been one for his ears or anyone else who had not been a part of the incident in Traverse Town.

"Anyway, you were calling it Reapers' Syndrome?" Sora asked.

Shiki nodded. "That's our name for it. Officially to most doctors it's just another case of post-traumatic stress disorder. They can't figure out the cause though, but we know what's up."

"We suffered," Neku continued. "Just the idea of being thrust into that game in the first place was maddening. We were just given a mission and told to complete or face erasure, every day. Sure there were breaks in between but we still couldn't wrap our heads around the magnitude of the situation even in that ephemeral peace. We got off easy as well. I know others, some who were given impossible tasks to complete, others who were forced to erase players. You find a partner or you can't survive, but at the end of the day, you don't know what will happen to that partner. You might next wake up never seeing them again, or you might even be forced to 'erase' them."

"Neku, stop. Please," Shiki said, looking down at the table. "My friend, Eri. She was one of the players in the game. We were partnered for a while but then we received a new mission. We were supposed to kill the other. I was supposed to kill my friend. I couldn't do it. Neither could she, but there was another option… an option she took to protect me. I would probably be among those with Reapers' Syndrome right now if not for meeting Neku and you two."

"Shiki, I'm so sorry. It must have been painful for you to recall that," Luna whispered.

"It's okay. It's not me that matters anymore. What matters now is that we help out those who weren't able to have the same luck I did," Shiki said.

"You really see it as luck, not your own strength that you're here right now?" Neku asked.

"Well, what else would you call it? I'm lucky to have met such wonderful friends like you. You gave me hope. Alone, I know I couldn't have lasted long. Also, I feel kind of bad calling myself strong because it implies those who couldn't handle it were weak," Shiki said.

"Admitting to yourself that you're strong doesn't make them weak. Sure, having friends helped you through a lot but a lot of realizing you still have a future has to do with your strength and acceptance. You could have just given up as soon as that happened but you didn't. It was because somewhere deep down, you wanted to survive. And you did," Neku said.

"Neku… thank you," Shiki said, smiling at him. Neku leaned back into his chair and looked elsewhere, although he was sporting a visible blush. They were interrupted when their all of their phones suddenly vibrated at once. Among those included was also Sora's PHS. He leaned sideways and fished it out of his pocket before looking at the screen.

 _Don't you just love reunions?_ ;-)

"Joshua..." Rhyme said. Sora furiously pressed at the screen, selecting the words to spell out their benefactor's name before pressing send.

 _Aren't you clever. Meet me on the roof of Pork City in 27 minutes. Past that, I don't intend to stay. Clock's ticking._

"Twenty-seven minutes? What an arbitrary number," Luna said. She looked at Sora and asked, "Think he has something cooked up for us?"

"I hope not. I've already eaten more than I can handle," Sora groaned. "How far is this Pork City anyway?"

"It's a building, actually not too far from here," Coco told him. "But I find it totally interesting how he gave you so much time. It really doesn't take _that_ long to get there."

"Is it really that strange? I mean, isn't he just saying I'll be there for a while so meet with me while I'm still there or somethin'?" Beat speculated.

"No, he specifically says _in_ twenty-seven minutes, almost like he expects us to meet him at that exact time," Rhyme said.

Neku stifled a laugh. "Even outside of the Reapers' Game, he's still playing games. You can look at it from a similar structure as to how we were assigned our missions. Reach Y place in X amount of time or insert consequence here."

"Well if we don't get to see him after twenty-seven minutes I hardly call that a disaster. Anyway, might as well go then. I'm not about to rush anywhere especially after having that delicious ramen," Sora said.

After Neku quickly paid for the food, the group left Ramen Don and started down the busy streets of Dogenzaka once more, this time heading for a tall building easily seen over many. Thirteen floors high, the complex, according to Shiki, tended to attract a lot of women much like the 104 Building with not only its lavish part-Hotel part-Office style architecture but its various shops dedicated to restaurants and clothing brands. Sora hadn't the faintest idea why Joshua would choose a building a like this but then again, a lot of things Joshua did made no sense. Learning of the Reapers' Syndrome and how it had affected the players in the game had just given Sora another reason to attack him on the spot. Just what could he even have to give them that would be so important anyway?

Arriving at the building, it became increasingly clear that something was incredibly wrong. It was empty. The hallways, the shops, all unusually clean and devoid of life. Sora frowned and exchanged a quick look with Luna. His hands slowly reached out for his Keyblade.

"Something isn't right he-"

"OW!"

Sora spun around to see that a barrier had been raised in between him and Luna preventing the rest of the group from advancing. Just then, he felt another vibration and took out his PHS.

 _Oh, before I forget. This is something only Sora and Luna need to hear, but feel free to tell them afterwards if you wish._

"You little sneak, Joshua," Sora said through gritted teeth.

"Hmph. As if a barrier's gonna stop me, Josh," Beat said. He ran forward and slammed his fist into the invisible barrier. There was a sharp sound as if glass was breaking but the only physical thing that happened was Beat being launched off his feet and onto the ground. "BWAHHHH! It totally just stopped me."

"Beat, seriously," Neku muttered under his breath while burying his head into his left hand.

"So what do we do now?" Luna asked once Rhyme and Shiki had managed to bring Beat back up on his feet.

"It's alright. We'll just wait outside for you to return. Seems like he's not about to limit freedom of speech either so you can just tell us when you get back," Rhyme said.

"Um, since you're all here now, I feel like I have to say something," Coco said. She was strangely more quiet than usual ever since they left Ramen Don.

"Coco, do you think it could wait until we come back? We only have twenty two minutes left," Sora said.

"Oh. Yeah, sure!" Coco said, the usual grin returning to her face. Sora grinned back at her and glanced at Luna.

"You ready?" he asked.

"Mmhm. Let's go," Luna answered.

The two of them set off down the long hallway, Keyblades at the ready for anything that might happen. Spotting the elevator up ahead, Sora walked over to it and pressed one of the buttons.

"Sora," Luna suddenly spoke.

"Hmm?"

"You're doing the thing Donald does," Luna pointed out. Sure enough, Sora had been tapping his left foot impatiently while waiting for the elevator.

"Oh, sorry. Guess I'm kind of nervous is all. Not sure why though," Sora admitted.

Luna's smile faded from her face almost as soon as he had finished speaking. Confused, Sora turned behind him and jumped back at the sight of a person wearing a red hoodie.

"Who are you supposed to be?"

"An angel of death. Now listen closely. The elevator's been disabled per the Composer's request. You'll have to climb the normal way. Tick tock, better hurry."

"There's no way… how did Joshua even take over this building anyway? Why is no one else here?" Sora asked. The man didn't answer his question. In fact he didn't do much of anything. He just stood there, uncaring and unperturbed.

"Sora, we don't have time to argue. We just have to do as he says," Luna said. Sora nodded and turned his back on the Reaper, following Luna down another hallway that seemed to promise stairs at the end. Before they could get any farther, a monster looking much like the ones they had fought back in Port Royal suddenly smashed through the glass divide separating the hallway from a nearby shop and locked Luna within its grasp.

"Luna!" Sora shakily directed his Keyblade, waiting for a precise moment when the monster's head would be exposed. Luna leaned her head to her left momentarily giving Sora the chance he need. He fired off the _Blizzard_ projectile, hitting the target's face dead on and causing it to let go off Luna. Luna backed away still in shock while Sora ran forward, jumped and cut through the monster with _Ars Arcanum_.

"You're not helping your case here, Joshua!" Sora yelled upwards. He turned around to see Luna holding her arm. "Are you hurt?"

"N-no, just a little startled is all," she replied.

"You're thinking back to the Reapers' Game, aren't you?" Sora asked.

"It's just… how far do you think he's going to take this? Why make us go through this just to talk to him?" Luna asked. "And that thing… why is he using that?"

Sora nodded. It came as a shock to suddenly see them, but it wasn't as if he hadn't been outright expecting them to pop up eventually, especially with what the Blue Fairy had told them back at Belle's village just minutes before their departure.

 _Flashback_

" _Sora, Luna, before you go I need to inform you of something," the Blue Fairy said as they prepared to depart for Shibuya. Sora wasn't sure why he had expected it but their search for Xion in the village had unsurprisingly ended in failure. They had to consider now that she was somewhere else entirely different._

" _What is it, ma'am?" Sora asked._

" _I've already told Riku this but you both need to be careful. As of recent, a new species of monster have been attacking various locations around the world. They've been carrying key shaped blades resembling your Keyblades."_

" _Yeah… we did face something like that back in Port Royal. They were really weird," Luna said._

" _Yen Sid and Neuge have noticed this too. Aside from my other work which I can't yet reveal, I've been working with them, the three fairies and the fairy godmother to uncover the secrets of this strange race. We've only managed to uncover so much as their name however. They are called the Wraith."_

" _Wraith… that's another word for ghost, isn't it?" Luna asked._

 _The Blue Fairy nodded. "We still don't know how they came into being, but they are powerful, of that you can be sure. The Heartless may be scant now but do not expect to let your guard down. As far as we know, these are your enemies now."_

End Flashback

"Well, as you said yourself, we just have to do what he says. We're closer to him than you think. Come on, fourteen minutes. Let's beat those stairs, okay?" Sora asked.

Luna smiled at him and Sora wasn't quite sure if the fluttery attitude he felt in his stomach was caused by the food, the threat of danger nearby or her smile. He looked away from her and took the lead this time, keeping an eye on anything that could pop out at them.

* * *

 ** _The Roof, Pork City_**

 ** _Shibuya_**

 _Two minutes left_. Sora narrowly avoided one of the rusted keys that the Wraith was swinging at him and brought his Keyblade upwards, encapsulating the monster in a block of ice. Luna jumped forward and used _Blitz_ smashing the chunk of ice into pieces. Sora wiped the sweat from his brow and let his Keyblade disappear.

"This should be… it..." he panted, looking towards the final door in their way. After climbing thirteen floors and fighting a few of the Wraiths, he was just about ready to collapse.

"Don't worry. I've got things handled from here," Luna said. She strode over to the door and pushed it open, stepping onto the roof.

"Oh, there you are, and with a minute to spare. I knew you could do-" Joshua's speech ended there as Luna walked up to him and threw a punch connecting with his nose.

"I don't usually resort to violence, but you've had it coming for a long time!" Luna snapped at him.

"Aw, and I kind of wanted to do it myself as well. Well, seeing Luna do it instead is probably just as satisfying, not that she should even have to," Sora said. He joined up with her and summoned his Keyblade, pointing it at Joshua. "What was that you just put us through?"

"A test, which you passed and admirably so. You guys truly deserve to be called champions of the light, though I never doubted that for one second," Joshua said.

"Sora, what is he on about?" Luna asked.

"I think he wants you to punch him again, Luna," Sora said.

"Must everything end in violence? Allow me to explain and then if you're not satisfied with my answer, you can feel free to punch me as much as you like," Joshua said. He got up from the ground and smoothed out his shirt.

Sora looked at Luna who nodded back at him. He let his Keyblade disappear and looked expectantly as Joshua. "Alright, you have the floor. But you can still by telling us what you're doing with Wraiths."

"Well, you see, I wanted to test you to make sure you were ready for this. The Wraiths you were fighting weren't actually the real thing. They're puppets I created in their image. If you were wondering why they weren't that strong, it's because of that," Joshua said.

"They weren't that strong?" Sora looked as if he had a pained expression on his face. He eventually forced a smile. "Oh, yeah, yeah, of course. I knew something was off about them."

Joshua chuckled and placed his hands in his pockets. "Of course, if you had lost to them I would have made sure they stopped before the final blow but I didn't have to do that. Tell me, what do you know about the Wraiths?"

"Not much. Just their name," Sora said.

"They're creatures unlike any you've ever faced. We hear the phrase the past comes back to haunt us all the time when we do bad things but we never usually know what that means until it happens. If this world has done bad things then the Wraiths are the past incarnate. They are a reminder of our sins and they will not rest until this world has faced its retribution," Joshua said.

"I still don't understand…" Sora said. It wasn't even his words that were just confusing. It was the permanent self-satisfied smirk he had on his face, as if he was smugly proud of knowing things that they did not and very much intended to painfully draw things out until they could spell it out like they were learning their ABCs for the first time. It was a grin that Sora detested but was forced to look at.

"It's alright if you don't. I'm sure _she_ can explain better than I. I don't tend to guess the workings of Kingdom Hearts. I'm only here to set you on the proper path," Joshua said.

"Kingdom Hearts? Wait. Now I really don't understand," Sora said. "So let me get this straight. You're working with Kingdom Hearts?"

"Not so much Kingdom Hearts as it is with a liaison of sorts," Joshua said. "I'm sure I've mentioned this before to Luna but I'm omniscient."

"Oh. _Oh_... wait, you were being serious then?" Luna asked with a big grin on her face. She started laughing and then stopped. "Wait. WHAT?"

"Oh, Luna, you're reactions are always so whimsical. Now that's a keeper, Sora," Joshua said.

"You're not funny, you know. Do you know about the patients at the hospital? Some of them have fortunately been able to recover, but others still don't even recognize anything that's going on around them. This is your fault. All because you wanted to play some stupid game-"

"I am sorry, I truly am, but I don't regret my actions either. The Shibuya you stand in right now would not exist if I hadn't done what I had. Sacrifices were made, and it is unfortunate, but it was for the greater good. Does hearing the lack of remorse in my voice make you angry? You of all people should know what it's like to make difficult choices, Sora. After all, the Keyblade War has begun yet again, and it's all because of you," Joshua said. Sora scowled at Joshua who laughed and shook his head. "Don't worry. I'm not about to hold that over your head. Just pointing out that sometimes we have to do things we don't particularly like."

"Well, I really did come here thinking that I was ready for whatever you had to throw at me. But then all the awful things you've done came floating up to the surface and I-" Sora caught himself before he fell into a full on rant and he instead bit his lower lip.

"You have every right to feel angry, but I'm not here to lament on the past. It's time we talk about the future." Joshua took his right hand out of his pocket and dangled a small key in front of them.

"Okay?" Sora asked in an unsure tone.

"See? I have a key too. But unlike your keys, would you believe me if I told you this key can do oh so much more?" Joshua asked.

"What is it for then?" Sora asked.

"Isn't that the question? How about this then-"

"Joshua," Sora warned.

"This is the last time I'll ask you to do anything, I promise. The last time I expect to have anyone do anything, for that matter. Consider this the final Reapers' Game. This time the only players will be you two and one other. Myself."

"Just what is this fascination you have with playing games?" Luna asked.

"Because sometimes life is just one big game. Whether we're talking Zero-sum or just plain old rationality, everything is calculated, the gains and losses are tallied, and in the end the one who survives is the one who plays the game well," Joshua said. "That said, you've proved me wrong. No matter how much I calculated or planned, you both proved that irrationality has a place in this world when you both entered my Traverse Town. That, I had not planned for. When I finally did figure out a way to use you, I failed to calculate the lengths to which your irrationality would go. You in particular, Sora, I did not expect to throw yourself in front of a Reaper just to save them. As for you, Luna, your belief in your dreams was infectious. It was that belief that led us to that fateful game of chess that night and even though you lost, it came not without positive results. Look at this."

Joshua pointed towards the town. "This is the Shibuya you've built. I could not have done this without meeting the two of you."

"What is this final game anyway?" Luna asked.

"It's quite simple. You just have to beat me in a fight."

"What?" Sora and Luna asked in sync. They exchanged brief look of confusion with one another before looking back.

"A pretty good deal, no? I'm giving you the chance to let all of your aggression and pent up anger towards me out right now and in return for winning, I'll give you this key and one more secret," Joshua said.

"And if you win?" Sora asked.

"You don't get the key and the secret remains with me. It's really as simple as that," Joshua said.

"With you, I really doubt that. Luna, what do you think?" Sora asked.

"Well, I'm interested in that key and if the only way we're going to get it is to fight him, then fight him we shall," Luna said.

"See? Luna's acting pretty decisive. Then again I could probably infer as much the moment she punched me. So what say you, Sora? Are you ready?" Joshua asked.

"Just bring it," Sora said, summoning his Keyblade along with Luna.

"'Bring it', he says. Alright, but I'm not going to hold back," Joshua said. The key in his right hand was replaced with an orb which he crushed with a clenched fist not to long afterward. A force field seemed to expand around the area, blanketing their vision from the outside world. When the battering winds that struck them finally resided, Sora looked around in shock. The Shibuya in front of him, once a dazzling display of life and color, was now desolate. Buildings were either completely destroyed or decayed and methods of transport lay strewn across the street like litter. In spite of this, nature still thrived; the skies were still blue like a layer of hope hanging over a city in despair.

"Joshua, what did you do?" Sora asked. When he turned to face the boy, his eyes found something else entirely. Wings sprouted out of Joshua's back, and he no longer looked human but something akin to a demon with pale skin.

"The Shibuya you see before you now is the one that was destroyed. Beyond saving, my only alternative was to stall for time, harvesting enough life force that I could bring back Shibuya exactly as it was before disaster befell the town. Now, give me everything you've got," Joshua spoke in a voice that seemed to reverberate with power.

Sora considered attacking for a moment only to hesitate. He had a feeling Joshua would be one tough opponent to beat and if he only had one chance at this he had to go all out. Sora concentrated his mana to his left hand and quickly summoned a second Keyblade. Now with Oathkeeper and Oblivion in each hand, he charged forward. He struck several times, each of his attacks being guarded by one of Joshua's wings. Joshua extended an arm forward for an attack but Sora warped out of the way and threw his Oblivion Keyblade at him. Joshua evaded the attack by flying up into the air. He raised his hand again and delivered several blasts of energy from his hand, all guided straight at Sora.

"Of course he can fly," Sora muttered. He side flipped to his left to avoid the first few blasts of energy before transforming his Keyblades into energy blasters. He fired a few shots off quickly, meeting each blast in the air with his own.

Luna aimed her free hand at Joshua and shot _Thundaga_ at him. The bolt of lightning hit Joshua and sent him spiralling a bit before he was able to regain his balance. He landed back on the rooftop before raising his hand. Towers of lightning rained down from the sky, targeting the area in between Joshua and his opponents and preventing them from getting near. Suddenly he grabbed one of the lightning towers that was in front of him and threw one at Luna. She tried to guard but the attack was too powerful and threw her off her feet, sending her off the rooftop and hurtling towards the ground.

"LUNA!" Sora yelled. He warped past Joshua and dodged the other towers before jumping off the roof. He managed to grab on to her waist and then threw Oathkeeper at the window of the building, shattering it and allowing him to quickly warp into the building. As they reappeared inside the building, Sora accidentally teleported them on top of a table causing them to topple over and fall along with the table and chairs.

"Ugh. That's not good," Sora groaned. He looked down to see Luna in his arms. Somehow he had managed to hold onto her through all of that. He whispered to her. "You okay?"

"Yeah. Thanks for saving me," Luna whispered back.

"You know. I find this position we're in at the moment quite… romantic."

"Only you could make light of an incredibly intense situation like this," Luna said. Sora caringly moved a strand of hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. He supposed he just needed a moment. Just the moment, to be at peace. As he leaned in to kiss her, the ceiling broke in and Joshua landed in the room.

"Always gotta ruin a good moment," Sora whispered to Luna. She giggled and the two helped each other up before joining Joshua in the middle of the room. Joshua sent more energy blasts their way but Sora cast _Magnega_ , drawing the other tables in the room towards the large vortex. Joshua's projectiles blasted the tables apart, allowing Sora and Luna to move around the room. Sora took to the left and cast _Fission Firaga_ , knocking Joshua into the air. Luna moved in from the right and jumped slamming her Keyblade onto Joshua using _Blizzard Edge_.

As Joshua landed and crashed through the glass windows of the shop into the hallway, Sora raced forward and slashed with both Oathkeeper and Oblivion. Joshua extended his hand and summoned a bo staff seemingly made of pure energy. Twirling it around for a moment, Joshua met Sora's attacks with his own. Sora's attacks were lightning fast, but Joshua seemed to meet them just as equally. Clear that they were at a stalemate, Sora crossed Oblivion and Oathkeeper and took the oncoming blow which sent him tumbling backwards. As Joshua flew towards him, Luna met him at the side and knocked him away with _Chain Rave_. Taking advantage of this, Sora aimed Oathkeeper at Joshua and cast _Tornado_ causing several whirlwinds to surround Joshua, buffeting him and knocking him back and forth against the turbulent winds.

"Time to end this, Luna," Sora said to her. She nodded and the two waited for the tornadoes to subside before darting in.

"ZANTETSUKEN!" They both cried, their attacks connecting with Joshua just before he could land. They both turned back to see Joshua disintegrating on the floor. As he did so, the floor itself came apart like an earthquake. The crack continued underneath his decaying body and in between Sora and Luna. Before he could react, Sora felt as if an invisible force was tugging his body backwards.

" _Sora... Sora…_ Sora!"

"Huh?" Sora's eyes opened and he looked around. They were standing back on the roof and Shibuya was back to normal. "W-what just… happened?"

"You won. Don't you remember?" Joshua asked. He held up the key and chucked it to Sora. Not expecting him to do so, Sora fumbled with the small object for a bit before finally bringing it to his chest. "You're ready to face the trials ahead. If you two work together, I think you'll definitely be able to move mountains. My role then is nearing its end."

"Joshua, what does this key even do?" Luna asked.

"I'd rather you find that out for yourself. Don't worry, the key for this door is very close by. If you keep going past the West Exit Bus Terminal near the station, you'll eventually come to an underpass that leads to the river. It won't be too hard to find the door then, I'd think," Joshua said.

"Joshua, Neku and the others deserve to know why you did the things you did. I don't know whether you're running away from them or whatever but it won't feel right if Luna and I are the ones to tell them, especially when we don't know everything. That's why you're going to explain everything to them," Sora said.

"Trust me, it wasn't anything a silly as running. I just wanted to give them some space. Let things settle down for a while before appearing before them. But you're right, Sora. I think it's time I confronted them, but not about everything," Joshua replied. He raised a finger before Sora could speak again and smiled. "Remember the secret I was keeping? Trust me. For their sakes, it's best they don't know everything. Anyway, I don't want to sour the mood just yet. I'll hold onto our secret until you get back from the door."

"When you put it like that I guess we're not going to like this secret," Luna said.

"Oh, it's definitely not a question of will or won't. I'm pretty sure you won't, but how you deal with it is the more important thing. Anyway, let's head down. I think it's about time we meet up with the gang, don't you?"

As they followed Joshua back inside the building and onto the thirteenth floor, Sora and Luna stopped and looked around. A building that had once been empty, the same they had climbed their way up and fought in, was now bustling with human traffic. Joshua simply smirked and continued on while Sora and Luna were left with dumbfounded expressions.

After taking the now working elevator down to the entrance, they met up with Neku and the others outside of the building. The group frowned upon seeing Joshua and while their expressions were not directed at him, Sora was standing right next to Joshua meaning he could feel their gaze on him too.

"Joshua…" Neku muttered coldly.

"I see you haven't changed a day, Neku. Keep that face up and you'll age terribly," Joshua said, flashing him a lopsided smile.

"I trusted you. We all did. Where were you all this time? Why did you ask Sora and Luna to come here? Why have the Reapers' Game in the first place?" Neku asked.

"I'll tell you everything, but first, the two of you have somewhere to be, don't you?" Joshua looked over at Sora and Luna. "I'm sure you won't want to keep the person I'm having you meet waiting."

"We'll be with you guys shortly. We just have a bit more to do. We can meet again by Hachiko's statue," Luna suggested. All in agreement, they parted ways. Joshua had promised them that this was the final game they would play, but could Sora really trust him? He looked down at the key in his hand and clutched it tightly. It was strange. How could such a small key be so important?


	13. The Heart That Rules Over All

**A/N: Quite a few surprises in this chapter so let's get right on with it, shall we? Also, just a reminder that you can still vote on the poll in my profile for which world you'd like to see. Currently Middleton is winning so Kim Possible will be the next world but if you want to change that, you know what you need to do. Anyway, on with the story.**

* * *

Chapter 12

The Heart That Rules Over All

After following what was a narrow pathway along the Shibuya River for what had been a kilometre's stretch of walking, Sora and Luna reached a door standing in between them and the rest of the path. The door was very irregular and out of place, not from its location or the fact that it was standing perfectly by itself without any support (although there was that too) but more so because of its design. It was an extravagant white door with a pointed roof and intricate designs spiralling outwards from the handles on either side.

"Well, Joshua, I must say, you've outdone yourself this time," Sora said, mainly to himself. His eyes wandered down to the small keyhole just under the lock. "Guess this is it."

"One moment, Sora. Let me try something," Luna said. She summoned Dream Seeker and pointed it at the lock. She waited, but nothing happened. Her Keyblade vanished and she looked at Sora. "Now that's a thing, huh? A door the Keyblade can't open."

"So it only opens for Joshua's key then. Alright, well… whatever's in there, just make sure you're ready," Sora said. Luna nodded at him and he fitted the key into the lock, giving it a sharp twist to the right. Pulling the key back out, he pocketed it and grasped both handles firmly. "You ready?"

"Can I say no?" Luna asked.

"No."

"Then yes."

Sora nodded grimly and then looked back at the door. "Okay then. One… two… three!"

As Sora pulled the door open, they were greeted by a bright light that escaped from the door. He looked inside briefly for a moment but could see nothing but light. He started walking.

That comfort of light was deceptive. It soon gave way to pitch black darkness all around them. Well, not exactly. The only light which appeared visible to them was that of the footpath in front of them, a projection of light that revealed itself going farther and farther every step they took. Sora's head suddenly felt heavy. When he turned, it felt like it took half a second more for his head to follow. Somewhere along the way, Luna's fingers managed to interlock with his which gave him a bit more confidence. If it had given him the spark he needed to continue on, he could only imagine how much it did for Luna.

They soon reached the end of this path. The darkness gave way to a beautiful scene in front of them. It was like they were in the Gummi Ship, viewing the sea of the skies except this time, it was all around them. They saw stars, constellations, a mixture of gaseous clouds of different colors and even dust clouds that seemed to lash out every so often. In front of them now however, was something that Sora could have only ever pictured to be in his dreams.

Unable to stand, he collapsed onto the floor while keeping his eyes on her. His head was moving from side to side but he wasn't aware of it. In front of him was someone that he shouldn't have been able to see, shouldn't have been able touch… no, he couldn't believe it, no matter how much she was standing in front of him right now.

He stood up and left Luna's side, walking weakly towards the girl. "Is it really you?"

Yeul gave a gentle smile and nodded. He arrived in front of her and reached out shakily, his hand touching her exposed shoulders. All at once, a wave of emotion fell over Sora and he broke down on the spot, his hands slipping away and falling to the ground in front of him.

"Sora, don't cry."

"It's you. It's really you. I thought you were dead. I saw you die, right in front of my eyes. I've been reliving that moment again and again and here you are in front of me," Sora cried out. He wasn't even sure if his words were coherent at all but it didn't matter. Yeul knelt down and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him in. He wasn't putting sure if she minded him crying into her shoulder, but her silence seemed to show caring.

"Yeul… it really is you, isn't it? Because please don't let this be dream," Luna said, kneeling down next to them. Her eyes were puffy and tears were streaming down her cheeks.

"I wouldn't let this be a dream for the world, Luna," Yeul said.

"So you're the one who was contact with Joshua. Amazing…" Luna said, wiping away her tears.

Sora raised his head from Yeul's shoulders and chuckled. "I'm sorry, I must look pathetic right about now, huh? Sorry, I just… I need to take this in. Take you in."

"You could never be pathetic or anything close in my eyes, Sora. You're my friend. Both of you are," Yeul said.

Sora wiped his own tears away and stood up slowly. "But how are you here? Abraxas, he-"

"Technically, I'm still dead. I'm unable to interact with the Realm of Light in any way. That's why I brought you here. This space you are in now is known as the Perpetual Divergence. It is the bridge that separates the realm in which you live from the Realm of the Dead, otherwise known as the afterlife. I have been entrusted to be its guardian for time evermore."

"So you can't come with us?" Sora asked dejectedly.

Strangely enough, Yeul smiled at this. "There may be a way, but it is dependent on my master."

"Your… master?"

Yeul pointed directly above them. Above their heads hung a giant heart shaped moon as black as the night sky. Had it not been for its glowing outline, the heart would have been completely blotted out by shadow.

"Kingdom Hearts? What's happened to it? It looks kinda funny," Sora asked.

"I'm sorry to tell you this, Sora, but you were partly the cause of that. When David Xanatos forced you to open the door to the Realm of the Dead, the effect was more disastrous than could have been imagined. Not only were the worlds forced to merge back to their original state, but the strain of the many hearts of the worlds returning to it at once was too much for Kingdom Hearts to bear. As a result, it fractured into seven pieces, all of which have fallen into the Realm of Light. The Realm of the Living and that of the dead have more or less become connected in a way they shouldn't be."

"And that means that Kingdom Hearts is weak?" Luna asked.

Yeul nodded. "When people die, their hearts live on. They become cleansed and purified, a complete clean slate, ready to enter the next person born into the world. This, I believe, is done for efficiency. The Heartless acted to stop that efficiency by capturing hearts to prevent them from being reborn. It was only when you freed them with the Keyblade that they could finally start that process. So you see, life and death is a continuous cycle. They act in parallel to one another but never intersect paths. When they do, as they do now, the cycle comes to a halt. In other words, the hearts will no longer be reborn. They'll die."

"What? No!" Sora yelled, he looked back up at Kingdom Hearts before looking at Yeul again. "This is my fault."

"You mustn't blame yourself. You wanted to save Luna, right? Then the only person who has to answer for what they've done is Xanatos, not you," Yeul said.

"I keep telling him but he can be pretty stubborn like that sometimes," Luna joked. Yeul chuckled at this, something that was worth more than anyone could possibly imagine to Sora. He remembered when he had first met her back in Thebes. That same timid, small girl was standing before him now, determined and more comfortable around them. Whatever time Namine must have spent with Yeul in Maleficent's captivity must have had a profound effect on the latter.

"Well, even with all the doom and gloom surrounding us right now, I'm just so happy I get to see you again. I still can't quite believe it. I suppose we owe Joshua one now, huh?" Sora said more so to Luna than Yeul.

"It's true he can be a bit eccentric. Then again, so am I so who am I to complain," Luna said before turning to the Seeress. "Yeul, you say hearts will stop being born. But, I don't understand. You'd think the number of people being born every day would be more than those who are dying. Wouldn't the hearts eventually run out anyway?"

"Good question. There is a law in this universe that energy cannot be created or destroyed, but it can be cultivated. If you think of hearts like a battery, then they provide the energy for our bodies to work. So how are new hearts born? Through a transfer of energy. Everything we touch, no, I suppose everything we come in contact with is the better way of putting it, has the capability of that energy being transferred to it. Even the smallest amount of energy can be a seed that develops into a heart. It proves most effective in a relationship such as one between parent and child. It is also that same energy which provides the basis for magic, though you know it as mana. So when you next cast an ice spell, you're actually dispersing a part of yourself across the environment. It's kind of strange when you think of it like that, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I suppose it's kind of daunting," Sora said. "So the way things are now, we're eventually going to run out of hearts?"

"And with it, the races that inhabit the Realm of Light shall become extinct. Right now, the process has completely stopped. For those who have died after Kingdom Hearts was fractured, their hearts are beyond saving at this point. The Keyblade War will only serve to foster more of those casualties. That's why we have to act now to restore Kingdom Hearts' power."

"And how do we do that?" Sora asked.

"That's why I brought you here. I'm asking you to find the seven fragments of the great heart scattered across the land. If we collect them, Kingdom Hearts should be able to reappear in the Realm of Light once again and with it, bring an end to the war. The cycle should also be restored by doing this," Yeul said.

"Do you know where these pieces are?" Sora asked.

"I do. It would not be wise to have you travel aimlessly after all. Summon your Keyblades for me," Yeul said. Sora and Luna followed her instruction and Yeul raised her hand over the Oathkeeper first. After a few seconds, a glow came from the Keyblade and Yeul moved over to the Dream Seeker. After Luna's Keyblade glowed, Yeul withdrew her hand. "The locations of those worlds should be imprinted in the memory of your Keyblades. They'll guide you to your destination, but as to the actual location of the fragment, it cannot to tell specifically."

"Of course not. Wouldn't want the fun to end," Sora said sarcastically.

"I'm sorry, but I can't locate their exact position. I just know the energy that Kingdom Hearts exerts and the fragments exhibit the same so-"

"No, you don't have to be sorry. I don't want you to feel like you're not helping. We can take it from here," Sora said. "Still, that reminds me of something. A while ago we learned something about the Keyblade. The way it was created. Is it true that human hearts were used to create them?"

"I'm afraid so. The Keyblades were never supposed to exist. Many tried to imitate the χ-blade, the gift Kingdom Hearts imparted onto the Atlanteans which allowed them to open death's door and see their loved ones. Some succeeded, many more failed. The ones that succeeded however… they were dangerous. They sought to bring misery, and the world needed not a door for it was becoming death itself. There were those who took up the Keyblade and used them to protect others, but in the end Kingdom Hearts had to intervene. Like a heart, it would wipe the slate clean and begin anew. The chosen few which Kingdom Hearts saved from the ancient world were to be the architects of the new one, the one we live in," Yeul said. "But what you really want to know is what the Wraiths are, correct?"

"Yes… can you tell us more about them?" asked Luna.

"I just did. The truth is that the Wraiths are ghosts, the lingering wills of those who had been used in the Keyblade's experiments. Not the ones that succeeded, but those that failed to make the mark. They cry for revenge, and they won't stop until they've had it. The rusted keys they carry are eternal reminders of what they were to become. They'll be the toughest opponents you've ever faced or ever will face."

"No way… talk about the past literally coming back to haunt you," Sora remarked. "So if we come across some we just have to take 'em out, same as always."

"How do you know all this stuff, Yeul? Is it your Farseer ability?" Luna asked.

"It's not quite that. I can't exactly tell you how I know these things. I just do. Maybe Kingdom Hearts is somehow providing these answers to me. As its guardian, my heart and Kingdom Hearts are inextricably linked. I know what it knows when it wants me to know it. Strangely enough, it doesn't feel weird knowing these things so abruptly," Yeul said.

"Well, you must have some training being accustomed to it, you know, with being a seer and all. I mean, I know I'd freak out if random facts I didn't know before suddenly started popping into my head," Sora said.

"It could be. Maybe that's why it chose me," Yeul said.

"You mean you don't know?" Sora asked.

"I feel as if I was sleeping for a long time. I believe it was after the worlds merged into one that I awoke. The first thing in my cone of vision was a bright light up ahead. It felt like I was dreaming. Before I knew it, I was here, and not only that, but I knew why I was here," Yeul said.

"And to think, all this by a heart in the sky… I've heard the stories from Sora but actually seeing it up front is something else entirely. And this isn't even what it actually looks like, right?" Luna asked, pointing up the heart above them.

"Yes, I do not mean to pressure you but we must act quickly. In its current state, it will not be long before Kingdom Hearts is unable to support itself. When that time comes, and this is difficult to say, Kingdom Hearts will fall into a state of apoptosis. It's a bit complicated but in human terms, it would be equivalent to heart failure."

"So it will… die?" Luna asked.

"Yes. The Princesses of Heart would be the last bastion of defence for the Realm of Light in that case but if even one of them were to perish, the world would be consumed by darkness. The Realm of the Dead will be left in a much worse state and I dare not think what happens if it were to disappear. That is why we must act quickly if we are to save this world," Yeul said.

"Then we'll do it. Of course we'd do it. I don't want to see this world die," Sora said.

Yeul smiled at him and held out her hand. There was poof of smoke that was soon replaced by a hovering moogle, looking around in a dazed state.

"Kupo, where am I?"

"Kupopo!" Luna yelled excitedly. The moogle turned to face her and yelled in shrill delight before flying at her chest.

"LUNA!"

"Yeah, you really have to stop doing that. That's not right," Sora said.

"You're just jealous, kupo!" Kupopo shot back before returning to nuzzling against her.

"While I wish I could join you both, my position makes that unfeasible. Still, I wouldn't want you to be lonely on your travels so Kupopo will serve as your companion," Yeul said. "Kingdom Hearts has also asked me to grant you additional powers to aid you, but first, you will be known now as the knights of the realms—the warriors of light."

"Warriors of Light?" Sora asked.

"It's a title Kingdom Hearts officially bestows to those who act in service of it. Don't worry. You needn't be anything but the way you are now," Yeul said, as if somehow managing to read Sora's mind and quell his fears. "As for your new powers, Sora, you remember your journey into the realm of sleep?"

"How could I forget?" Sora asked. He recalled briefly his endeavour into the world of dreams where he and Riku had travelled for their Mark of Mastery, or for Sora what had been his first.

"Then take this orb. If you believe dreams can become reality, then this power will allow you to call forth your Dream Eater spirits into this realm," Yeul said.

"No way!" Sora leaned in and closely inspected the yellow orb that had appeared in front of him. The orb was actually a stream of yellow energy, and if one were to focus they would see tiny creatures floating within this stream. Sora grabbed onto the orb, suddenly feeling a rush of electricity travel through his fingertips. He extended his arm and concentrated before calling for Meow Wow. A cute cat-dog like creature popped into existence in front of him. He looked around curiously for a moment before detecting his master behind him, and turned around to face him. As he waddled over, Sora scooted him up. "How're you doing, buddy? Long time no see!"

"Oh dear! He's too cute," Luna squealed. Sora handed him over to her and she pulled it in to rub noses.

"Yeah, it is. Just don't use fire near it. It freaks out a lot near fire," Sora said.

"Aw, it's okay. I hate heights so I tend to freak out sometimes too. It's nothing to worry about," Luna said. Meanwhile, Kupopo eyed Meow Wow suspiciously before looking away in disgust.

"There's only room for one cute companion and quirky character trait in this group, kupo. I have my eyes on you," he warned with a piercing glare, though as a Moogle it really just looked like the narrow lines of his eyes were just a little more straighter than normal.

"Settle down, Kupopo. No one's replacing you. If Donald's not here, I need someone else to argue with anyway," Sora said.

"And what's that supposed to mean, kupo?"

"All I'm saying is that there's always a foil and since Donald's here someone has to be."

"You dumb-dumb, kupo. It should be you!"

"You've been travelling with us for how long and you still don't understand how this works?"

Yeul's giggle interrupted their arguing and they turned their attention to her. Sora feigned innocence and scratched the nape of his neck. "Something funny?"

"It's just... I'm glad to see everyone in such high spirits, pun intended. Anyway, I think it's time for you to return. Oh, before I forget, Sora, while you can control the spirits, it is not without limits. You are, after all, calling something which technically doesn't exist into a realm of existence and to make matters even more complicated, you're pulling them out of your own subconscious. First thing's first, the spirit will only be able to maintain a physical presence for about three minutes or perhaps less depending on the Dream Eater, so do what you need to and quickly. Furthermore, be careful not to overuse that power. Too many things being pulled from your mind within a short amount of time can result in severe consequences which I'd rather not go into. Just one or two a day and no more than that. Understood?"

"I understand," Sora said with a prompt nod of his head. "Thank you, Yeul."

"Thank Kingdom Hearts. That you have that key in your pocket now proves that Kingdom Hearts has put its trust in you. You are both Keepers of the Key," Yeul said. Sora pulled out the small key he and Luna had used to get here and turned it about in his hand. Yeul continued, "If you ever need to come and talk to me, use the Keyblade on that key and you'll have access to the door once more. That way, we'll be able to stay in contact with each other."

"That's good to hear. I don't want our next meeting to be so few and far in between. When we next come back, maybe we can tell you about everything that happened after the tower. Heh, I mean even aside from that, there's so much to catch up on," Sora said.

"That would be lovely. I myself don't have much to speak of so I can really only listen. I hope you don't mind," Yeul said.

"No, that's fine. Everything going to be fine, isn't it, Yeul? If we do this, then Kingdom Hearts might set you free and we can be together. Maybe we can go to your home world and have a picnic or something. Namine wanted to visit your hometown as well."

"Namine… how is she doing?" Yeul asked.

"I… I don't know actually. She's gone missing. So has Xion. Kairi's doing who knows what and Riku, well I'm worried he'll take things too far. I haven't heard from Terra, Ven, Aqua or Lea yet. And Roxas… he's dead," Sora said in a low voice. His stare was absent as he recalled what he knew of his friends whereabouts. "Right now, things just aren't fine. So when I see you, it gives me hope. You don't realize how much you standing here right now means to me."

"I'll always be there for you, Sora, even if physically we're realms apart. And once Kingdom Hearts is restored, there's hope for us. I can't guarantee it but we need to have hope," Yeul said.

"I have hope, and not just from seeing you again. Looking around, there are stars here, right? Then the stars definitely aren't gone for good. They can still come back!" Luna said.

"Yes, it is as you say. Unfortunately I cannot claim to know about their disappearance, as such an event is unprecedented, but I, or Kingdom Hearts, still feels their presence. I've already asked Joshua to investigate further so when I have something concrete, I'll be able to tell you," answered Yeul.

"Not even Kingdom Hearts knows? That's slightly worrying but I trust you'll find something," Sora said. "So I guess it's time we set off again. The sooner we find those pieces the better."

"Be sure to pace yourself, of course. We are on a time limit but I believe your well-beings are just as important," Yeul said.

"Of course. Well, until we meet again, Yeul," Sora said. Yeul nodded and walked over to him, pulling him into another hug. It took all of his restraint not to just remain there in her arms.

* * *

 ** _Rubicon_**

 ** _Shibuya River_**

Joshua was awaiting Sora, Luna and Kupopo when they returned from the Perpetual Divergence. He flashed a smile at them before looking at the door.

"Enjoy the reunion?" he asked.

Sora ignored his question and instead asked, "You're working with Yeul to help Kingdom Hearts?"

"You sound surprised. It's not like this just affects you, you know. There's a whole other world out there and-"

"Okay, enough with the nonsense, Joshua. What do you get out of this? I don't believe for one second that you would do something like this without an ulterior motive," Sora said.

Joshua moved a rogue strand of hair from his face and gave him a coy smile. " _Alea iacta est_."

"Scusey?" Sora asked.

"The die has been cast. You see, Sora, even if you don't realize it, I stand to gain everything from playing the introductory role to your new journey. I am what you would call an observer. There doesn't need to be much to satisfy me. It just needs to be something… unexpected, otherwise I get bored easily. I've made my choice by betting on you and now the rest is in fate's hands, though I can't say that fate's particularly in your favor. I have reservations about the two of you being able to end an entire war and save the world. It's simply too much, but then again, the Reapers' Game has taught me to always expect the unexpected. Anyway, before you go, I would like to show you something. Come with me to the Scramble Crossing."

As Joshua turned and walked away, Luna and Sora shot each other nervous looks. As Joshua had finished speaking, the smile faded from his face and he looked deadly serious at them. A deadly serious Joshua couldn't be anything good, Sora concluded.

"Where are Neku and the others?" Sora asked as they started down the West Exit Bus Terminal linking to Shibuya Station.

"You'll see them soon," was all he said, and he left it at that. Sora wasn't comfortable with this sudden uneasiness exuding from Joshua but believing that matters were ultimately out of his hands, he decided to leave it for now.

They soon arrived at the crossing. Joshua stood in the middle of the street and turned around. "I doubt I need to tell you two of all people this but this world is a very big place, full of strange and fascinating wonders. It takes a courageous heart to leave the confines and the safety of the borders of their own little world and venture to the world outside. In that sense, even though this world has become one again, it is also made of many individual worlds, individual minds that think and dream as you do. You've been to many worlds now and you've seen that with your own eyes. You're too knowledgeable to look the other way when it comes to these things. A Keyblade War means that those dreams will come to an end."

"Joshua, what are you getting at?" Sora asked.

"Look around you, Sora. These people have dreams. Each and every one of them. All they want is a normal life, and so they continue about their daily lives without awareness. They don't want to acknowledge that they might not truly exist, but you two should be aware though. So I want you to look closely. Look beyond the lie," Joshua said.

"Joshua, what are you talking abou-" Sora was about to ask him again when he froze, his voice caught in his throat. He glanced around, as did Luna, but there was no sign of anyone else where there had been so many just a second ago. It was just the three of them standing there in the middle of an empty crossing.

"What's going on? Where did everyone go?" Luna asked.

"Another one of your tricks, Joshua?" Sora questioned with an angry glare.

"Oh, no, I assure you, for all the deceptions and tricks I've thrown at you thus far, this is not one of them. People see only what they want to see. The entire time, you've been under the assumption that you've been talking and looking at living breathing people, but your heart knows better. This is the secret I wanted to share with you. The people you've been interacting with, with the exception of any of the players that took part in Traverse Town, are merely dreams made physically manifest," Joshua said.

"So, you're saying that all these people—they aren't real?" Luna asked. "But that can't be true! This has to be some other reality like the one you had us fight you in."

"Do you really believe that? Take a look at the pictures you took and all should be made clear," Joshua said.

"Pictures?" Sora asked slowly. It was only after a brief moment that he remembered that he had taken pictures when they had first arrived here with the PHS. So many things had happened in between that it had completely slipped his mind. He pulled out the phone and went through the motions of moving to the photo application. He selected it and pressed on the last image he had taken. His eyes widened in horror and he had to quickly refrain from dropping the PHS on the spot. "No… No-no-no-no-NO! This can't be!"

"Sora, what is it?" Luna asked, peering over. She immediately recoiled in surprise. The picture of the 104 Building that he had taken in the background was still there, but everyone else who had once been in the picture had inexplicably vanished. Sora moved his thumb to the left on the screen, bringing them to the previous picture. Sora and Luna were both in the shot that they had taken but once again, the rest of the area was completely devoid of life.

"Joshua, what did-"

"You seem to have a knack for blaming me when there's something you don't agree with," Joshua commented.

"Because you're usually the one that's causing it," Sora snapped at him. "So what, you're saying that everyone we've come across here is fake?"

"Were you even listening? Neku and the others are as real as they come, as well as all other people involved in the Traverse Town incident—"

"I know what you meant," Sora cut off, more than a little annoyed. He had just come back from seeing Yeul and he had been happy and Joshua had chosen now of all times to do something like this. Just as he thought he was about to ease up on him, Joshua was all too ready to make sure that dislike stuck. He looked back down at the PHS and swiped through the two photos, hoping that somehow, something would change. Of course, nothing did.

"That said, to also say the people here are fake is a bit disingenuous. I said they were dreams but they are also much more. You know that the original purpose of the Reapers' Game was to harvest energy in order to recreate Shibuya, and that energy came at the cost of unfortunate sacrifices. As I've said, I'm not going to justify what I did. That said, although I could bring back the world, I could not bring back the people in their physical forms. I just don't have that kind of power. But I do have one power, a power that I'm quite proud of having. My dreams are quite powerful to the point where they are even malleable. You see, my consciousness is shared with the heart of Shibuya, or what is now inside Kingdom Hearts itself. When I did that, I was able to give the dreams of the world's heart human form."

"Wait, so you're saying you're hooked up to Kingdom Hearts?" Luna asked.

"Makes sense why I was able to find the door, no? It just so happened that you did me a favor when you opened that door since the hearts of every single world out there all flew straight back into Kingdom Hearts, including the one I was connected to. Anyway, all hearts dream, and the worlds' hearts are no exception. They can recall each and every individual who has ever lived and breathed inside their ecosystem, like a massive hard drive of data. To that end, the people here are not fake. They live and breathe and think as they always have. If it looks real, talks real and thinks real, why can't it be real?" Joshua explained.

"So you're saying that it's all about perception?" Luna concluded. She looked around her again, as did Sora. The crossing was no longer empty but filled with crowds once more.

"But that's still not right. You're having Neku and all the other players live false lives," Sora said.

"False lives? I'm sorry, but I would have to disagree with that. When you bought those boots from that one shop assistant, do you think that her thoughts, her feelings, were all fake? Because if you do, that's an insult to her memory," Joshua said. "No one truly knows who they really are or for what reason they exist. It's just that in case, they don't actually exist, but do they know that? Is this some elaborate play I've crafted? No. Their dreams are autonomous and out of my hands. As far as I'm concerned, that's real enough for me. Does knowing that hurt? If so then prepare to face much more of it along the way. Not just the pain of reality, but of loss and of simply not knowing."

"So you show us this now to make a point? Even so, do you intend for the players in the Reapers' Game to just live here then?" Sora asked.

"What do you mean? They're free to leave whenever they like. The worlds are connected now, after all," Joshua said. "They'll go on their own journeys eventually, but it's up to you to make that a reality. Anyway, I'll stay out of your hair for the time being. I'm sure the world is in capable hands."

As Joshua turned around to walk off, Sora felt he had to say something. He took a step forward and called after the boy. Joshua stopped in his tracks and Sora chose his next words carefully. "The way this world is right now, there's no point having grudges so… thank you."

"Heh, what for?" Joshua asked. Just like that, he faded out of sight, his body becoming transparent at first until he was completely gone, like he had never been there in the first place. The crowd however, seemed to take no notice of this and continued about their business as usual.

Sora snorted. "I really don't get that guy."

"Neither do I, and I doubt we ever will," Luna replied with a smile.

"Yo, strangers. Where you been?"

Hearing a familiar voice behind him, they turned around to see Beat accompanied by the others.

"Meeting up with old friends. Here, everyone, this is Kupopo. He's been travelling with us on our adventures for a while now," Luna introduced.

"Aw, a Moogle! I've always wanted one of those. He's so cute," Rhyme cooed.

"He is, isn't he? So what did Joshua talk to you guys about?" Luna asked.

"He told us pretty much what he told you. He apologized and he also said he'd try to help the people affected by Reapers' Syndrome as best as he can but there's no guarantee," Neku said. "It's strange. I've been searching for him for almost a year and now that I've found him, I'm still not satisfied. Maybe I never will be. Maybe I'll just have to get used to that," Neku said.

"Yeah, that's kind of the conclusion we came to. Maybe it's a Josh thing," Sora said.

"Can I say something to you guys?" Coco asked, causing all eyes to turn on her.

"Sure, Coco. Oh, you wanted to say something before we entered Pork City, right?" Sora recalled.

"Yeah, it's about that. I just wanted to apologize for the Reapers' Game. I was also a Reaper participating in that game and… well it's like, I didn't really do it because I was cruel like some of the others. The thing is that I may not look like it but I was totally lonely. I know I may not look like it but I'm really all not that confident and I only talk like this 'cause I'm shy. I wanted just some friends so the guy under Joshy-boy, Kitaniji, promised me I'd totally make some if I became a Reaper. I totally didn't mean to harm anyone but I still feel responsible because I let things happen the way did. It was totally selfish of me, huh?" Coco said, holding onto the edges of her hoodie.

"Wanting to have friends is selfish? If it is then sign me up," Shiki said.

"Yep, and I think wanting to make friends is a commendable thing in any circumstance. At least you kept you kept your head above the surface instead of delving in deep like the other Reapers. For that, you can't really be blamed for anything," Luna said.

"Thanks, everyone. I feel a lot better now," Coco replied, sporting her famous grin.

"So, how long you guys stayin' anyway?" Beat asked.

"Just for the day I think. We can't stay for too long so we'll probably be gone by night," Sora said.

"Aw, too bad. And I was going to show you the love hotels around here. You two could use one," Shiki said with a sly smile.

"Love hotel? What's a-"

"Err, since we don't have much time I think we need to hurry on with the tour. There's still so much to explore," Neku intervened before Sora could finish his question.

"Right. On with the tour! By the time we're done you'll wish you couldn't leave. I can be a pretty effective tour guide, you know," Shiki told them with a wink. Sora looked at them for a moment before nodding. As they set off again, Sora suddenly felt guilty. He felt like he had been bestowed a great burden that he could never share, especially when those it concerned would be affected by it the most. This could only have been the feeling Joshua had described, but this time it was the pain of ultimately being unable to do or say anything.

"Sora, you coming?" Coco asked. Sora looked up from the road to see that the gang were already departing.

"Yeah," Sora said. Memories or not, as he simply observed what was supposedly a halcyon mishmash of people intersecting with one another, what he was feeling right now was real. Shibuya was very much real. Whether the people here in front of him or not truly existed was inconsequential. He had promised himself back in Traverse Town when he rang the bell a year ago that he would protect those players' memories. This was no exception.

* * *

 **A/N: Quelle surprise, huh? I finally found a place to put my little friends in from Dream Drop Distance. The thing is that since half of the worlds in that game are also in this series as new ones, you kind of have to suspend your disbelief. Just assume that any of the worlds before The World That Never Was were not canon basically, since the only things that matter are the parts in between those worlds and the ending itself. Anyway, have fun and see you for the next chapter!**


	14. In the Middle of the Sitch

**A/N: So with Kim Possible chosen as the first world our heroes go to, it's time for a journey to Middleton. Hope you enjoy the chapter and as always, feedback is appreciated.**

* * *

Chapter 13

In the Middle of the Sitch

The Gummi Ship flew high above the clouds, the world below unbeknownst to them. At points the Gummi Ship shook, not too violently but enough that it nerved him at certain times. He wasn't quite used to the sensation of turbulence yet, it seemed.

He lay on his bed, closing his eyes and repeating his encounter with Yeul over and over in his mind. He wanted to take in every detail. He wanted to know that he truly hadn't been dreaming and that every part of it actually happened. He smiled and began laughing. His thoughts moved on to imagining the reactions of everyone when he told them the news.

" _I think he's finally gone insane,"_ he could hear Riku's voice.

" _Sora, you know that's not possible, right?"_ Kairi spoke as if she were chiding a child for telling a naughty fib. And then when Yeul appeared in front of them again, the looks of utter flabbergast on their faces caused him to shake his head and let out a big grin.

Of course, before such a scenario could even happen he had to find these seven pieces of Kingdom Hearts first. Currently they were travelling to their first, the process helped out by the Keyblade which he supposed must have somehow instructed the Gummi Ship where to go next. They certainly hadn't needed to enter any co-ordinates because the ship had somehow already decided their destination for them as soon as they switched on auto pilot.

He sat up as Luna entered the room. Her hair was still drying, wrapped in a towel, from her recent shower.

"Sorry, I couldn't help but wonder what's so funny. Am I missing out on a good joke? Couldn't be from you," she said.

"Are you suggesting I don't jest good? Please, I am the jester of jests," Sora replied.

"Hmm. I'm not quite sure I believe you. Not after all those bad puns," Luna said, raising a brow.

"Luna, would this face lie?" Sora asked, pulling off the most toon-style face he could possibly muster. Luna snorted and looked the other way.

"That doesn't count. Pulling faces is cheating," Luna retorted.

"Only cause I'm naturally gifted. Come on, you try it. This is something I need to see," Sora said.

"Er, I'm not sure I-"

"Come on, it'll be fun. Just breathe in and out and pull the silliest face you've got. I won't tell you I won't laugh, because that's kind of what you want me to do," Sora encouraged.

"Okay, but you'll regret it," Luna mumbled. She inhaled and exhaled and closed her eyes shut before opening them again, sticking out her tongue and letting it sit the side and her eyes focused inwards towards her nose.

"Wooooow…" Sora admired adding in a whistle as Luna reverted to her normal state.

"See? I told you you'd regret it," Luna said.

"What are you talking about? I regret nothing. I wish I had taken a photo of that actually. I wonder how Kit would react to it," Sora said.

"So it was stupid then?" Luna asked.

"Of course it was. That's the point. Mine was too so I'd say you passed with flying colors. How did it make you feel?" Sora asked.

"I thought I'd be embarrassed, but strangely enough, I feel glad instead. I think it's because I couldn't be this way back in Alexander. When I was with the other kids, I was afraid that if I even attempted to joke or even smile there'd be something they could use to insult me. I was wearing braces at one point, and I'd dare not smile in front of them. Then Astra came along and I felt like I could be myself around her. I didn't worry about the others because she was always there for me. You make me feel the same. I've said before that I left Alexander behind. That I'd never return. While I still can't stay there now, knowing what I do about the outside world, I do want to return and face my fears. I'm feeling brave. Like I could go back to high school and tell them I made it. That I believed in something no one else did and I was right. I didn't let them bring me down!" Luna exclaimed with glee in her eyes.

"And make sure you pull that same face when you do. Everyone deserves to know you're happy to be you," Sora said, leaning in and planting a kiss on her cheek.

"We're approaching a world, kupo!" Kupopo announced as he came in on them. A tinge of jealousy seemed to take over the moogle and before Sora knew it, he was being attacked from all sides.

"ACH! DON'T HATE ME CAUSE I'M BEAUTIFUL!" Sora yelled as he ran out of the room, a heated moogle on his pursuit and Luna left laughing in their wake.

* * *

 ** _Downtown Middleton_**

"Ron, get out of the way!"

Ron Stoppable's high pitched scream rang out as he dodged the several tentacles that were aiming for him. Unfortunately, one made contact with his ankle and tripped him over.

"KIM!" Ron yelled as he was lifted into the air by the giant robot. Kim athletically evaded the incoming laser shots from the robot with a series of flips before jumping and delivering a flying kick to the tentacle arm. The claw's grip loosened under the attack and Ron dropped to the ground, a naked mole rat squirming to get out from under Ron.

"Oh, sorry there, buddy," Ron said, leaning forward so the mole rat could escape.

"Are you just going to sit there?" Kim asked him. Ron quickly came to his senses and fled from his position before the tentacles could strike again.

"Just what even is this thing?" Ron asked as he arrived at Kim's side.

"Probably another of Dr. Drakken's robots? But it seems too much, even for him," Kim replied.

"Yeah, kind of like a little kid who wanted to put all his favorite mechs from the cartoon shows he used to watch all into one super awesome robot. Can't say I disagree with it either," Ron said.

"Well, you're basically a kid in all but age and appearance so it's to be expected," Kim said.

"Hey, just because you lack creative imagination doesn't mean we all do. I know art when I see it."

"Uh-huh, you keep telling yourself that," Kim said. "Anyway, I'll have to get in contact with Wade later. For now, we deal with this thing."

Before Kim could run back in however, a blazing Keyblade flew in from her right and struck one of the extending tentacles. The weapon, like a boomerang, soon curved around and returned to its owner.

"You two need to get going. We'll take it from here," Luna said, coming in between Kim and Ron. Sora joined up with her and got into his battle stance.

"Who are-"

"I'm Luna, he's Sora and that's Kupopo over there, for future reference. Anyway, you need to go. This thing is much tougher than you think."

"You mean, you've fought this thing before?" Kim asked.

"Kim, not sure we have time for twenty-one questions. Maybe later, but's let take their advice and scram," Ron said.

"Fine, but I want answers so I'll be nearby," Kim said to them before turning to leave with Ron.

Sora looked back at the robot and asked, "So the Omnidroid's here too? You think Xanatos might be here?"

"A piece of heart and Xanatos? Well, it would certainly be killing two chocobos with one stone, though I certainly don't agree with the saying, oh, and speaking of idioms, the phrase can't make an omelette without breaking some eggs… I mean, omelettes are pretty tasty and-"

"Luna, eyes on the prize, please?" Sora suggested.

"Oh well, I'll have to write down for later. Let's take this thing down," Luna replied.

"Right!" Sora agreed. He charged in and countered one of the arms with the Kingdom Key before rolling out of the way of a laser shot. He didn't pause as he completed his role and kept running around the Omnidroid. Sora extended his hand and casted _Thundaga,_ bolts of lightning emerging from his hand and striking the robot, pushing it back slightly.

Luna dashed forward and used one of the Omnidroid's arms as a spring, bouncing off it and gaining higher ground.

" _Meteor Strike_!" Her body lit a blazing red and she hurtled down, driving her feet in the Omnidroid's head. When she landed back on the ground, she looked up to see the crushed remains of a head instead.

"Right, time to try this bad boy out," Sora said. He placed his hands on his chest and then drew outwards, summoning a Kab Kannon spirit in front of him. The Omnidroid switched into its defensive position, retracting its arms back into its body and began rolling for Sora. "I sure hope this works… okay, now!"

A shield appeared in front of the rhinoceros beetle and the Omnidroid smacked into it. An unstoppable force hit dead on with an immovable object as the Omnidroid found itself halted by the Dream Eater. Still, it persisted, a trail of smoke starting to appear underneath. Kab Kannon winced slightly but kept firm, still, it was clear it couldn't withstand the Omnidroid's drive system forever. Sora swung upwards, creating a huge formation of rock to jut out from underneath the Omnidroid, sending it up into the air.

" _Aeroga_!" He cast soon after, keeping the Omnidroid in the air. Luna ran forward and cast _Flare_. The strong gust of wind soon became a towering fire that spiralled and spit and swallowed the Omnidroid whole.

Sora was the first to be depleted of energy, not just from the magic casted but the amount of mana it took to pull the Dream Eater out of his subconscious. Barely able to hold onto the Keyblade, he let it drop from his hands and not soon after sunk to the floor to join it. Kab Kannon disappeared from sight as did the wind spell, but the magic had done its job. The components within the Omnidroid were fried as displayed by its jerking motions.

"Sora, are you okay?" Luna asked, running up to him.

"INITIATING SELF DESTRUCT SEQUENCE IN 3… 2…"

Sora looked up at the petrified Luna, who stood there in shock at the announcement from the robotic voice. Sora reached out for her, but the lack of energy in his body just seemed to drag him back down. He wouldn't reach in time. Fortunately, it was her that recovered in time to help him. She jumped towards just before the Omnidroid could explode and cast _Reflect_. An explosion went off around them, smacking and battering the shield from all angles.

When the explosion eventually resided, Luna lowered the barrier and looked to Sora. "You okay?"

"Yeah, that just took more out of me than I expected. Who knew pulling dreams into the real world could take so much effort? The thing is, I didn't feel like this when I summoned Meow Wow back in that one place with Yeul," Sora said.

"You mean the Perpetual Divergence? I was thinking that while we're in that bridge between the Realm of the Living and the Realm of the Dead, our mana is different than usual. Maybe we can't even run out. I did feel kind of different while there."

"That makes sense. I guess it's just going to take a little more getting used to until I learn how to conserve it properly," Sora said.

"Did not expect it to just up and blow all of a sudden. I'm just glad I got to you in time," Luna said.

"Me too," Sora replied, letting out a raspy chuckle. They both looked up upon seeing two shadows looming over them.

"Are you guys alright?" Kim asked.

"Yeah, we're just dandy," Sora said.

"Whoa! You guys were awesome out there! You were like POW and it was all PEW PEW and you were like PSHAWW!" Ron said, making motions with his hands.

"Not the way I would put it but I have to admit, you were impressive. We couldn't even put a dent in the thing. I'm Kim Possible and this is my assistant-"

"Partner," Ron corrected.

"Assistant… Ron Stoppable. He also has a cute little mole rat named Rufus," Kim said. The mole rat popped out of Ron's collar to wave at them.

"Heya there, Rufus. So what are you two doing out here? You look like teenagers," Sora said.

"Uh, hello? Pot calling kettle? Also, we could ask the same. I've never seen you two around Middleton before, and what is that thing you're wielding? That's a pretty unique weapon you've got there," Kim said.

"Sorry, did you say Middleton?" Luna asked. Luna and Sora exchanged quick looks with each other, none of which escape Kim's suspicious gaze. If this really was the same Middleton that they had found themselves in then it was possible that Riku was also somewhere around here searching for Janus. Still, they had time to figure things out later.

"I guess we do owe you an explanation, huh," Sora said. He then proceeded to fill her and Ron in on who they were and what they doing in Middleton.

"Well, I don't think I've seen anything like that," Kim replied after hearing about the pieces of heart. "But you come from outside Middleton? It's strange. A while ago, if you had told me something like this I would have called you crazy. Nowadays I don't think it's so strange, almost like it makes sense for there to be something else out there."

Now that Sora thought about it, when these places were worlds no one really seemed aware of the existence of an outside world. His case was an exception because he had heard about them from Riku and Kairi arriving on the islands only served to strengthen that belief. Luna, she had wanted nothing more than to see the stars. Even then, her case was unusual to her peers who had teased and bullied her for her dream. He wondered if the barriers surrounding the worlds had also somehow acted towards blocking off people's awareness of other worlds.

"When do you think that started to make sense to you?" Sora asked.

"Huh? I mean, I can't a put a definitive time stamp on it but maybe around the time the stars in the sky started to disappear. And talk about freaky by the way. Everyone's panicking," Kim said. So he was right then. When the stars started disappearing would have been around the time the worlds merged. Still, there was one thing that didn't make sense to him, though he decided to ask Yeul this later.

"Don't worry. They'll come back. You just have to keep believing," Luna said.

"I mean, it's pretty hard to sometimes. They've been gone for a while now. Not even scientists know the cause for it," Kim said. Sora couldn't bring himself to tell her that he had probably been the cause of those stars disappearing. In fact, even with the time he had to mull it over, he still found it hard to believe even now.

"Hey, you haven't seen a guy with silver hair named Riku walking around, have you? Or anyone else suspicious for that matter?" Sora asked.

"Well I come across all sorts of shady guys in my line of work, but I haven't seen anyone with silver hair," Kim said.

Sora raised a brow. "Just what is your line of work anyway?"

"Oh, I'm just a full time high-schooler, part time vigilante," Kim answered.

"You say that like it's normal," Sora said.

"I suppose in a way, it has become a normal part of my life now. I'll say it's… interesting having to balance my hero life and my school life," Kim said. "I imagine Ron's just starting to find that out too."

"Yep, just starting out here. K.P's teaching me the old ropes," Ron said, doing a few jabs at the air with his fists.

"There's nothing any old about these ropes, and what did I tell you about calling me K.P. all of a sudden? It's Kim. It's Kim like you've always called me ever since we were childhood friends. Nothing's changed," Kim said with annoyance in her voice.

"Aw, come on, K.P. It's a pretty cool name, don't you think, Rufus?" Ron asked his mole rat friend who gave him a quick nod in agreement.

"You and I have very different definitions of the word 'cool'," Kim said. She turned back to Sora and Luna and said, "Hey, can you do me a favor? I want to get closer and check out that robot. This kid I know, Wade, he's a genius in every sense of the word and he's only ten-years-old. If the robot's autonomous, then it must be receiving a signal from somewhere, right? He'll probably be able to find it so could you help me out?"

"Well, it looks pretty badly damaged to me already so I'm not sure how much we can help but sure, we'll see what we can do," Sora said. If there was anything that could lead him to Xanatos, he would take it. The five of them walked (or in Kupopo's case floated) over to the damaged Omnidroid and inspected it from all angles. Kim finally stopped at its crushed head and latched onto the edges, giving it a tug. The head soon came off leaving a small hole that led into the Omnidroid's cockpit.

Sora peered inside and nodded as if deciding something before turning to look at Kupopo. "Alright, you're up, Kupopo. In you go."

"Say WHAT, kupo? I am not going in there," Kupopo said.

"You are literally the only one who can fit in there and that Pom-pom on your head allows you to see in the dark. There should be a way to open the back part of the Omnidroid from in there," Sora explained.

"Would you do it for us, Kupopo? I know I'd be so happy if you did. For me?" Luna asked with a warm smile. Kupopo looked like a marshmallow about to melt under heat. With a jubilant 'kupo', he flew straight in.

"Manipulating the poor guy. Gee, Luna," Sora said.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Luna said with a dreamy smile on her face. The robot soon gave a mechanical hiss and a separate door opened up from the back, Kupopo flying out of it.

" _Da-Da-Da-Daaaa!_ Mission accomplished, kupo," he announced as he flew straight towards Luna.

"That's my Moogle," Luna said, softly patting him on the head.

"Thanks, Kupopo. Alright, let's see what the sitch is here," Kim said before stepping into the cockpit.

Luna walked over to Sora and put a hand on his shoulder. "Sora, do you think Xanatos is here?"

"If he is then I can finally settle the score. He'll pay for what he did. And I have to pay too. That redemption means finding him, restoring Kingdom Hearts, ending this war and bringing Yeul back to our side. I've never felt so clear-headed until now. I know what I have to do," Sora said.

"What _we_ have to do. At least we have an end goal in sight this time, but you need to remember that we're not just here for Xanatos," Luna said.

"Right. We have to find that piece of heart first," Sora said. Sticking with Kim and Ron would probably be a good idea for now but it was possible that their mission would eventually separate them.

It was not long before Kim returned to them with a device in her hand that looked like a PDA.

"What's that, Kim?" Luna asked.

"It's my Kimmunicator. Ha-ha, yeah I know, pretty cheesy but that's what Wade decided to call it when he gave it to me. Speaking of the wiz kid, here he is," Kim said, handing her the device.

"Greetings and salutations, tech neophytes," the kid on the other end of the screen said.

"Sorry, you'll have to excuse him. Despite being ten, he's already graduated from high school and college. Yeah, Wade, cool it with the superiority complex."

"Ah, I'm just kidding, Kim. So who would these two be?" Wade asked.

"I'm Luna and this is Sora. So hold on. You're ten and you've already done high school and college? In other words, you're a prodigy?" Luna asked.

"Well, I do know more than the average person about computers. I was pretty much raised by one, you could say," Wade explained.

"Hmm, maybe you could teach Sora here a thing or two then," Luna jested, grinning at Sora who stuck his tongue out at her in response. She turned back to Wade and asked, "So let me guess. You're a hacker, right?"

"Yep, though I wouldn't say it aloud. It's kind of frowned upon," Wade said.

"That's pretty neat. I'm a hacker too, actually. I like to hack away at Heartless," Sora said. Luna flashed him a glare as if she meant to say "Really?" to him. He decided to change the topic. "Speaking of neat, are you a NEET?"

"Haha, that's a great one. NEET. Neat. It's beautiful," Ron said, wiping an invisible tear from his eye.

"Well, that is pretty much what I am, though you could say gathering information for Kim is much more important than any regular old boring job. Put it this way, I could probably work for the government if I wanted. I'm talking six figures here. But I don't so I don't really think the term NEET applies here," Wade said. "Also, the data just finished downloading on my end, Kim. I'm seeing schematics… wow! This thing has been through a lot of upgrades, physical and virtual. The current system firmware is labelled as Omnidroid version X11. I'd hate to meet the other ten. Anyway, one thing's for sure, Kim. As you are now, you're not prepared for this. You're probably going to need more in the way of firepower to combat that thing's firepower. Fortunately for you, I've got just the thing."

"Wade…" Kim said with a cautious stare.

"Don't worry, I think you'll like it. But it's not ready just yet. I still have a few modifications to make especially in light of this recent incident. In the meantime while I'm tracking down the signal and preparing the avant-garde of weapons, I have another lead for you to follow on. Your old friend Señor Senior Sr. and his son have been spotted at the Ink and Paint Club. Chances are he might know something about those robots or where Drakken's hiding out," Wade said.

"Hardly a friend. Well, this better be worth it," Kim said. She took the Kimmunicator from Luna and looked back at Sora and Luna. "Are you guys tagging along? I'd love to find out more about the places outside of Middleton on the way there."

"I'm not sure we have any choice. It's not like we know our way around here so of course we'll come," Sora said. As Sora, Luna and Kupopo set off with Kim and Ron down the empty city street they failed to notice a figure in an organic looking exo suit and helmet watching them from behind. They slowly turned their head and looked towards the damaged Omnidroid lying next to them.

"Looks like those twerps have finally shown up. Sorry, Kimmie, but this time you're not on my priority list," a woman dropped down from the adjacent rooftop and landed next to him. Her skin was pale with a slight greenish tinge and her eyes were an even deeper green.

"As long as you leave Sora to me, I don't care what you do with the other one," the masked individual said. A mechanical and cold voice rang out from their helmet that gave the impression of something demonic.

"Ooh, how edgy. You are really gunning for that Sora kid, huh? So what's your backstory then? He stole one of your toys as a kid?" she asked in jest.

"There is no backstory, no hidden past. My hatred for him simply bypasses my own will to live. There is no further discussion needed. I will kill him. If necessary, I will hurt everyone he cares about in order to get to him."

"Right, because that totally doesn't seem like you don't have a history with him. And while I can't say I don't value a good revenge story, I'm sorry but I'm not forsaking Xanatos' plans for your personal gain. After KRONOS is done with him, you can have him. It'll be like sending out the hounds for the hunt," said the woman.

"I don't care about your plan, Shego. I've been waiting for this day for some time now and I'm not going to let him get away. His blood must be spilt by my hands-"

"After Project Rebirth is complete. Go read a book or something, preferably a really long one. We still have some ways to go," Shego said.

"No thanks, I'm not interested. Still, there's other ways to bide my time. That guy who met with Xanatos and the doctor. One of Sora's friends is here to find him. Guess, I'll bide my time with him instead." With that, the individual opened up a corridor of darkness and stepped through. Shego rolled her eyes, clearly unamused by the situation she found herself in, and followed after the masked individual shortly after.

* * *

 ** _Ink and Paint Club, Downtown Middleton_**

When Sora, Luna and Team Possible arrived at the club, they were greeted to a dark and atmospheric room with a stage at the front and small catwalk in between the smaller tables that hosted the guests. On stage was a beautiful woman with red hair and a slender hourglass figure. Her eyes roamed about the room with a sultry gaze as she sang.

"So where is this Señor anyway?" Luna asked while looking around.

"There he is," Kim said, pointing to a table on their left. Sitting at it was an old man with greying hair near his temples and next to him was his Adonis of a son, a muscular man with tanned skin and blue eyes. Kim turned back to them and said, "Now if we could be really subtle about this, we can-"

"HEY, IF IT AIN'T SEN-DAWG AND JUN-DAWG!" Ron called, waving as he walked up to them.

Kim slapped herself lightly on the cheek and slowly let it slide down. "Kill me now."

"Hmm? I am not a hot dog," Junior said upon seeing Ron.

"Kill us both, please," Luna said to Kim.

"Well if it isn't… er… Kim Possible's assistant!" Senior identified.

"Come on, man. It's Ron Stoppable. And I prefer the term 'partner'," Ron whispered the last part.

"Assistant. And it's nice to see you again Señor. I didn't think you were the type to come to these sorts of places," Kim greeted.

"Please, Miss Possible, you give me little credit. I am a man of the refined arts. Why, just yesterday I recently purchased several paintings that Junior here quite admired," Senior replied.

"They were all beautiful. Of course, not as beautiful as me," Junior added, flashing them a grin.

"Right… anyway, I came here to ask if you had an idea on Dr. Drakken's whereabouts. He's been unusually quiet as of late, don't you think?" Kim asked.

Senior chuckled. "And why would you expect to know where he is?"

"Because lookey here, you're both bad guys, what a coincidence. I figured it might be worth a try," Kim answered.

"A view teeming with myopia. That things must be labelled right down the middle like that is unfortunate, and yet, I cannot deny what you say. I do quite enjoy the traditional sense of villainy. Take, for example, some of the men you see at the different tables around here. You see, those are my men," Senior pointed out. Sora looked around to see a few people from different tables sneakily glancing their way. Others weren't but there was no way to tell for sure how many people were with Senior.

"Well, well. I didn't think you were type to cower behind a bunch of cronies," Kim said.

"I think you misunderstand my intention, Miss Possible. I am not cowering. Merely making an observation with which you can interpret as you like."

"And perhaps you misunderstand mine. I'm not moving until I get some answers," Kim replied.

"Perhaps I should have made myself clearer," Senior said, gesturing with his hands. Within seconds, a group of people encircled them, all tall and imposing. "I think you should leave before others start to… wonder."

Kim shot Luna and Sora a smug smile before looking back at Senior. "Unfortunately for you, my jurisdiction doesn't exclude public areas."

"Allow me," Luna said, summoning her Keyblade. Pointing at one of the red curtains on her left, she cast fire, setting them alight. She turned around and screamed, "THERE'S A FIRE! EVERYONE GET OUT!"

Everyone turned towards her in confusion, but their eyes instead found the flaming curtains and burst out screaming, scrambling from the seats and heading for the door. Even Señor Junior screamed and would have run if his father hadn't held him by the nape of his neck. The songstress seemed confused for a second and her eyes met with Luna's for a brief period. Then she slipped behind the stage curtains and disappeared. Luna waited until everyone was evacuated except for the obvious bodyguards of Senior and Junior before putting out the flames with _Watera_.

"What an impressive display of theatrics. Your powers are similar to a man who I encountered not too long ago," Senior said.

"A man? Did he have silver hair? And eyepatch?" Sora asked.

"And who are you supposed to be? No matter. I doubt I will care after you are gone from my sight," Senior answered. He clicked his fingers and the men closed in on them.

"You just couldn't come quietly, could you? Bad guys… they never learn," Kim said. She sidestepped as one of the men threw a punch at her. She trapped his fist within her own two hands and flipped around, interlocking her legs with his arm and drawing her weight down to throw him across the room.

"Sorry," Sora apologized, grabbing a bottle from in front of Junior. He hurled it to his right, sending it smashing into the face of one of the henchmen. He jumped onto the table and summoned the Kingdom Key before flipping off it. The Keyblade changed into the shape of a spear which he stabbed into the ground. A field of electricity travelled towards the henchmen, shocking them into an unconscious state. Meanwhile, Luna, who had been far off and had consequently avoided the attack, was using _Strike Raid_ repeatedly to fend off her own attackers.

"Woo! Can't catch me! _Na-na-na-na-na_!" Ron teased as he jumped from table to table with surprising athleticism. It seemed the henchmen were having trouble reaching him as they pulled at the table cloths in order to catch him. Rufus even jumped out of Ron's shirt, bouncing from head to head in an effort to trip them up.

"Ron, watch out!" Sora yelled but it was too late. As Ron was looking back and laughing at the henchmen, he failed to notice he was running out of tables. When he did finally looked back, he tried to screech to a halt only to trip, the table flipping in the air. It soon came back down, landing on a nearing henchman's head. Sora blinked. "Well, that was handy."

Sora quickly looked toward Kupopo who floated upwards before a bright light emerged from him that knocked his own surrounding enemies out in a flash. At the sound of footsteps landing next to him, Sora whipped around to see Kim grabbing Senior and throwing him to the floor.

"Father!" Junior made an attempt to move from his seat but Sora pointed his Keyblade at him.

"I don't think so," he said with a smile.

"So you come into a club, set fire to the curtains, disturb the perfect harmony all for a chance to get to me, and you call yourselves good guys? What an interesting world we live in," Senior said.

"It probably wouldn't have happened had you just answered Kim's questions," Luna said. "Now about that Keyblade wielder you saw."

"So that's what you call it. Can't say I ever saw an eyepatch. He was hiding behind sunglasses. And his hair was more ash white than silver, though I suppose it would be easy to mistake the two," Senior said.

"Sunglasses… it's the guy Riku's searching for—Janus," Sora said to Luna.

"He wanted to know about something. The whereabouts of a group called KRONOS. Not that I could tell him anything," Senior said. He then looked to Kim. "But you're right, I do know Dr. Drakken's location, and I did tell him. He was rather persuasive about it, as you are now."

"The location, will you tell us?" Kim asked. Her clenched fist turned into an open hand. Senior let out a small grunt and accepted the hand, allowing her to hoist him back onto his feet.

"I believe he's left for a place called the Kingdom of Kuzco, or more aptly named the land of Inca. I've never been there myself but I have heard it is a fabulous kingdom which hosts some of the most exquisite architecture," Senior told them.

"Looks like we're heading to Inca then," Luna said.

"Not yet. We have to find that piece of heart first," Sora replied.

Senior looked at them with intrigue. "A piece of heart, you say? That's interesting. Just today, I read in the papers a few months ago that scientists had recently been conducting research on a strange object that had fallen out of the sky. It was something that looked heart-shaped but they didn't know what it was, and still don't."

Kim's eyes grew big. "Wait a second… my dad mentioned a while back that he and his co-workers had discovered a major breakthrough that was capable of changing the world. You don't think…"

"Your father's a scientist? That's not good," Sora said, finally withdrawing his Keyblade from Junior's throat.

"Well, my dad would tend to disagree. He wouldn't think he's wasting his time-"

"Not that. Your dad and his co-workers might be in danger. He needs to stop research on that thing now," Sora warned. He had been through enough adventures to know that playing around with hearts was never a good idea, and when said heart happened to belong to the most important heart of all, he couldn't help but see flags being raised.

"Then we'll have to find him. He should be at the tweebs' school with mom for their parent-teacher meeting," Kim said.

"Tweebs?" Luna asked.

"Oh, I have two twin brothers. Both of which are extremely annoying, hence twin dweebs, tweebs," Kim clarified.

"Right, let's get going. Sorry we trashed the place and gave your guys a beating," Sora said.

"You're not sorry," Senior said.

Sora seemed to consider this before saying, "Okay, maybe I'm not- look, I mean, since you gave us information and everything I thought I had to say something!"

"Excuse me. The two of you?"

Sora turned from Senior and looked over to see the red-headed songstress walking over towards them. She had a very hypnotizing way of walking, but Sora tried his best to ignore that and focused on her face, though he found quickly that that didn't help much either.

"You're looking for a boy with silver hair?" the woman continued. "I've seen him around."

* * *

 **A/N: So I'm sure you all can probably guess who the red-haired woman is. The name of the club is also a reference to it as it is with a few other things Disney related. Animation can be such a fun subject to read over, and pretty stressful to actually do which is why I'm not one. Anyway, catch you all next time for more Team Possible shenanigans.**


	15. Pride in Chaos

Chapter 14

Pride in Chaos

 ** _Backstage – Ink and Paint Club, Downtown Middleton_**

After heading backstage, Sora, Luna and Team Possible arrived in the dressing room of one Jessica Rabbit. She took a seat next to her table and crossed one long leg over the other in a seductive manner.

"So you said you saw Riku, Miss… er, Rabbit?" Luna asked after ensuring that Sora's jaw wasn't tilted downward.

"Please, call me Jessica. He was a dashing young man, like a superhero, appearing from the sky to save the poor damsel in distress A.K.A me. He defended me from those awful creatures and saw me to safety," Jessica said.

"Creatures? Were they Heartless? Or maybe Wraiths?" asked Luna.

"The Wraiths. That's it. That's the name he referred to them by. They had the same keys you two and Riku use but larger and more rusted."

Sora's eyes grew big. "He got rid of all of them? We were having problems with just one. So, where is he?"

"He was looking for the white haired guy with sunglasses that the old man mentioned. I don't know much more than that. He did escort me to the club at my behest however but this was two days back. What a charming and mysterious young man," Jessica seemed to ponder, sticking out of her bottom lip.

"Charming, that's a good one," Sora said. "Anyway, if it was two days ago he might not be here anymore, right? I'll just have to trust that he's alright. So what do you do here, Jessica? Just sing?"

"Just sing? Honey, I enjoy what I do. To me, it's not just singing or a way to make a quick buck. It's life. And how about you? What do you do for a living?" Jessica asked, leaning in with a look of curiosity.

"I fight, I suppose. Anyway, it's okay. I have a friend who does theatre so I can understand where you're coming from," Sora said.

A beeping sound alerted everyone to Kim's pocket. She quickly took out her Kimmunicator and pressed a button to reveal Wade.

"Hey, Wade. We just got something on Drakken. He's somewhere in a place called Inca," Kim told him.

"Right, my search picked up on as much. Since that's out of the way, I'm happy to announce that the preparations are complete. Come over to my house and I'll show you," Wade said.

"You sound really eager about this. I'll be over as soon as I can. Listen, I was wondering if you could do a search on all mentions of something to do with a heart-shaped object or just anything in general falling out of the sky recently," Kim said.

"Sure I can but… any reason why in particular?" Wade asked.

"I think my dad is doing research on it with his co-workers. It's difficult to explain but to put it in simple terms, it might be… alien in origin," Kim said.

"Wow. You got me. I was not expecting that one. Sure, I'll look into it. I'll probably be done by the time you get here," Wade replied.

"I don't doubt it. See you there," Kim said. She shut down the communication and placed the device in her pocket before walking to the door. "Time to head out again."

"Right, thanks again, Jessica. Sora, don't even think about it," Luna warned.

Sora looked about incredulously. "I haven't even done anything yet!"

"Yeah. Yet. You are at that age," Luna said.

"Sorry, Lu. I think I've long passed that age," Sora replied adding in an awkward laugh.

"Trust me, you really haven't," Luna said. She nodded at Jessica before promptly dragging Sora away.

* * *

 _ **Wade's House, Middleton**_

After arriving in the more suburban areas of Middleton, the group located Wade's house only two blocks away from their current position. At the end of his street was a cul-de-sac, but Wade's house was just before it. Wade let them in without resistance and Sora struggled to fathom how a ten-year-old boy could be such a genius.

Leading them into the basement, he walked over to what was a cloth that was covering up something and grasped at it. "Prepare to feast your eyes on this!"

The cloth was tugged away in an instant, revealing a white outfit with blue lines going across in several areas of the costume. Kim walked over and, with the approval of Wade, picked up the clothing and ran her hands across it.

"What is it?" she asked, handing it over to Luna for her, Ron, Sora and Kupopo to check.

"A battle suit, made out of 100% polyester material. I kind of hacked into the military's database and copied a few of their proto-designs," Wade said.

"Wade, you know that's illegal, right?" Kim asked.

"Kim, hacking isn't exactly a reputable hobby in the first place. Look, I know what I'm getting myself into here but you're safety comes first. As the missions get tougher, you'll have to fight for longer. There are other threats out there, Kim. Far more powerful than any foe you've ever faced. To meet that challenge, you need the power to match it," Wade said. "So, are you ready to give it a try?"

Kim turned to meet the faces of Sora and Luna. The former smiled at her and said, "It's up to you, Kim. What do you want to do?"

Kim nodded and looked at the battle suit with a nostalgic smile. "You know, I never actually chose to be hero. Or at least, it didn't come about because I randomly decided to start doing it one day. I actually needed some cash and I thought that by setting up a babysitting business on the web that I could make some. Well, one day a millionaire happened to get himself caught up in a dilemma involving lasers and he accidently made a typo on the web address. I got involved and I saved him and he made sure everyone knew about me. I was famous. The thing is, it never was about the fame for me. It just felt good helping people out. I can do anything—that was my motto for the website. I guess I can change it now to I will do anything. I'll use the suit."

"Booyah! That's the spirit, K.P!" Ron exclaimed, pumping his fists into the air.

"Then if we're willing to move on, I'll go into the finer features of the suit. The battle suit allows you to run at faster speeds and jump higher than thought possible by reducing the influence of gravity. On top of that, it also has regenerative properties. You suffer a light wound and it uses the latest in nanofiber technology to repair it. Keep in mind it still can't save you from severe inflictions so don't go suddenly thinking that you're invincible or anything. Also, it is a prototype, keep that in mind. I'm not saying it'll break because I'm highly confident in my abilities, but it hasn't been tested yet. Anyway, back to the parts you actually want to hear, the suit also has advanced shielding, think of it as a bubble that you can activate around you and others nearby. Finally, your hands can also transform into gauntlets to catch or knock back energy. Cool, huh?"

"You really went all out on this, didn't you?" Kim asked. Requesting the suit back from Luna, Kim unfolded the suit and held it up in front of her. "Might as well try it out then… turn around, boys."

"Yes, ma'am," Sora and Ron said in unison. When Kim told them it was alright to look again, Sora turned to see her in a suit that clung perfectly to her frame. The blue lines on the suit had also turned neon blue from registering its user.

"So, anyone up for a spar?" Kim asked.

"Ooh, me, me, I volunteer as tribute!" Ron yelled, jumping up and down.

"Okay… ignoring your lame movie references, I don't think you're exactly suited for this, Ron. Anyone else?" Kim asked, much to her sidekick's visible disappointment.

"I'll do it," Luna offered.

"Not in here, please? The backyard will do," Wade suggested. Leading them to the back of his house, the group arrived in an average sized rectangular garden equipped with a porch and treehouse in the back. Kim started walking until she was a good few feet away the others and threw up her fists in a defensive stance.

"Alright, have at me, Luna," she said. Luna summoned her Keyblade and ran in to attack. As she cut downwards, Kim dodged to her right with lightning quick speed and jumped. Luna blinked as Kim soared over her head and landed next to Sora and the others.

"Wow, I feel light in this," Kim said, looking down at her arms in wonder. Luna darted forward and tried to strike again but Kim raised her hand, a force field like bubble appearing around her. The Keyblade's attacks bounced off the shield's ripples no matter which angle Luna attacked from. Kim soon jumped back, consequently breaking the force shield. Luna aimed her Keyblade and fired of a low-tier _Fire_ spell. Kim's right hand shifted into a gauntlet and met the spell, absorbing it into the hand before deflecting it back out.

" _Reflect_!" Luna cast at the last second, deflecting the shot with her Keyblade upwards into the air. It was the force and speed of the blast combined with her lack of preparation that knocked her off balance and she stumbled backwards, falling to the ground.

"Luna, are you alright?" Kim asked, quickly changing the gauntlet back into her normal hand before running over to help her up.

"Yeah, thanks. I just didn't expect that. That was amazing, Kim!" Luna praised.

"Yeah, the Keyblade can't even put a dent in that shield. That's pretty impressive for something that's experimental technology," Sora said, giving a thumbs up of approval.

"Wade's still got it," Wade said, coolly stretching his arms about.

"Neato, neato... So where's my costume? I mean, I am Kim's assistant so I get one too, right?" Ron asked.

Kim and Wade exchanged nervous glances. There was suddenly a quiet atmosphere in the air, as if all life had suddenly just stopped. Sora had never experienced it, but in his mind he equated it to that one guy who arrives unfashionably late to parties only to find he was wearing the wrong dress code.

"Ron… maybe you ought to sit this one out," Kim soon broke the silence. They weren't the words needed either because Sora and Luna suddenly began to feel uncomfortable.

Ron frowned at this and asked the obvious question. "What do you mean?"

"Look, we were no match for that robot when we fought it. We needed Sora and Luna's help out there. Then there are these Wraith things and… if it really is getting more dangerous, I can't have anything holding me back-"

"So, you just think I'm holding you back then?"

"No, sorry, poor choice of words. What I mean to say is… well, I… okay, yeah, you're basically holding me back," Kim admitted with her eyes elsewhere.

"But I thought… aren't we partners, Kim? Don't partners help each other out? What about Rufus? Can you say no to him?" Ron asked, pulling out Rufus who seemed to act as an extension of Ron, pleading with puppy-dog eyes.

"Sorry, Rufus, but I can't get you or Ron involved. It's just not safe for either of you," Kim said.

"But Kim-"

"No means no, Ron."

Ron looked downwards dejectedly before looking up, sadness in his eyes. "Fine. I get it. You never wanted me to be your partner in the first place."

"I didn't say that-"

"But you know, you could at least have the curtesy to look at me and say it. But I get it. Kim always has to be cool. Kim always has to be perfect. Kim can't cry. Well… I'm sorry I can't be like you," Ron said.

"Ron!" Kim called after him, but it was too late. He had disappeared back into Wade's house and silence appropriated the yard once more.

" _Awkwaaard_ , kupo!" Kupopo was the one to break the silence this time.

"Kim, are you sure you don't want to go after him? Stop him!" Luna said, her face etched with perturbation.

"It's fine. It's for his own good," Kim said.

"I mean, I don't know about that. He did seem pretty low on energy after that. I think you crushed his motivation," Sora said.

"Deflating Ron's ego isn't necessarily a bad thing. Plus you don't know him like I do. Give it a day and he'll be screaming for Bueno Nacho's all day long," Kim said.

"Bueno Nacho's?" Sora asked.

"Oh, it's just a fast-food joint and it also happens to be where most of high schoolers hang out after school. It was the first place Ron and I visited together when we were still in elementary school. He didn't know how to ride a bike yet and I offered to take him there on my bike," Kim reminisced.

"So you two have been friends for a long time then, huh? I only met Sora a year and a half ago," Luna said.

"Ron's still fresh, you know? He hasn't been on many missions yet. I only allowed him to come with me because he kept pestering me about it so I took him on one mission to show him how I do things and one became two, two became four and now we're fully working together. The problem is though that Ron is… well, he's Ron. Every now and then he makes these silly mistakes that sometimes put the mission in jeopardy. You saw it with the tables back at the Ink and Paint Club but even before that… it just gets on my nerves sometimes. How am I supposed to deal with that?"

"Every now and then? Kim, I think Ron's right. You're a perfectionist, aren't you?" Luna asked. When Kim didn't reply, Luna continued. "So am I also right in saying that you don't just expect perfection from yourself, but from others around you as well?"

"If I want to be nagged at, I'd just stay home. Look, are we going to find this heart of yours or not?" Kim asked, irritation dwelling in her voice. She turned to Wade and asked, "Did you check up on that thing I asked?"

Wade seemed all too happy to steer the conversation away from negativity and adopted and enthusiastic grin. "On things falling out of the sky? Of course. From what I could find, two articles were published, one a while back and the other more recently. The first is just talking about the general discovery of a heart-shaped object near the centre of Middleton Park. Nothing else too interesting except that scientists would be looking into the strange artefact, but you knew that already. That article by the way was breaking news on several websites and newspaper headlines. And while the second story didn't gain as much traction, it is more important.

"The second article details the procedures they've used so far to research the heart piece, mainly involving laser technology. They've noticed 'a strange pulsating glow' from the heart when either shocked or heated. Their end goal, your father is quoted as saying, Kim, is to be able to extract what they believe can be used as unlimited renewable energy," Wade said.

"Then we need to stop them. If they think they can control a heart they've got another thing coming," Sora said. "So, where's your father again, Kim?"

"At my brothers' school. Considering the pranks those two usually play, they'll be there for a while. Let's hurry," Kim said.

* * *

 _ **Middleton Middle School, Middleton**_

"James and Timothy Possible! When will you ever learn?" scolded their father, James Possible, as the two ten-year-old twins shrunk back in their seat from having been just reprimanded by their teacher and mother.

"But it was just a little project on the side. I mean, who doesn't like drones? We were hoping for extra credit," Jim said.

"Guess we can take our talents elsewhere," Tim said sulkily.

"If you're thinking of dropping out of school then stop those thoughts right. You two are incredibly talented and if you applied yourself better in your studies like your sister, you would excel," chided their mother, Ann Possible.

"Still you have to admit we got Mrs. Carter really good, huh?" Jim said.

"Yep. Who knew disguising a drone as a giant flying spider would work so well," Tim agreed.

"Hicka-bicka-boo?"

"Hoo-sha!"

As they bumped fists with one another, their first thought was that their twin bonding had been enough to cause the glass of water on their teacher's desk to shake slightly.

"Whoa, did we do that?" Jim asked.

Tim whistled. "Cool!"

"It's not you two," Ann said, watching as the glass shook again. In fact, everything was shaking. Faintly at first, but shaking more and more violently in conjunction with the growing sounds of plodding yet heavy metallic footsteps getting closer and closer.

The sounds soon stopped and the room stopped shaking along with the deafening silence. Then it happened. An explosion blasted the wall, destroying it completely and leaving them all open to the outside. James moved quickly to cover his wife from the explosion, but when the dust settled he found himself being lifted up by a giant metal claw. Following the claws long arm led back to a sphere shaped robot protected by an armored shell.

"What the… what's going on?" James demanded, trying to detach himself from the powerful grip. He stopped moving completely when he saw Shego jump into the room from on top of the giant robot.

"Sorry, Dr. P, but you're coming with me. Don't resist and you won't get hurt," she said.

"What do you want with him?" Ann asked. The door to the classroom suddenly burst open and Kim darted in, followed by Sora, Luna and Kupopo.

Kim quickly analyzed the situation before looking back at her rival. "Shego, let go of him, now!"

"Oh, Kimmie, you wanna come instead? Sorry, I'm a little overbooked right now," Shego said. She kicked at the desk in front of her, sending it hurtling their way. Sora warped in front of Kim quickly and batted the desk into the wall with the Kingdom Key.

"Sora, nice to meet you. David Xanatos sends his regards," Shego said.

"Xanatos… then you're with KRONOS? Who are you?" Sora asked.

"Her name is Shego. She usually works with one of my enemies, a guy named Dr. Drakken, but he disappeared a while ago. I guess he's chosen to finally come out of the shadows now," Kim said. The name rang familiar for him now that Sora thought about it. When Kairi had interrogated Freya, the rat assassin hired to kill her, she had learned of Dr. Drakken and someone else named Yzma who had both been working on the Chimera drug.

"Take me to Xanatos right now. What's he running from? Let's just put an end to this," Sora said.

"Hmm, can't say it's in our interests. Still, that's not stopping me from having some fun," Shego said. She looked back at the Omnidroid and pointed. "Take Dr. Possible and bring him back to base."

Following its orders blindly, the Omnidroid immediately turned and started moving away from the school, dragging Kim's father behind it with its arms.

"Kim-"

"I got it, mom. Hey, I'm going after my dad. Do you think-"

"I'm coming along too," Sora cut in. "You'll need more than one to stop that thing."

"Then I'll hold of Shego," Luna said.

Kim seemed apprehensive of this but Luna just smiled. "Don't worry. I've fought a lot of things before. I can handle her by myself."

"I'll trust you. Alright, Sora let's go. Mom, get the tweebs and their teacher out of here," Kim said. She charged forward and slipped past Shego with Sora following afterward. Neither of them Shego chose to intervene with. Her eyes instead were only the person who dared to challenge her alone. Luna waited for Ann to take the twins and the teacher (who was walking very strangely) out of the classroom and was about to open her mouth when laughter erupted from Shego.

"Did you see that guy? He totally pissed himself. Not his best moment," Shego said through laughter.

"It's not funny. Don't you see what you've done? What all of KRONOS has done? Because of you, this world is at war," Luna said. "And I usually see myself as a highly empathetic person and even to a fault so I have to ask—why? Don't you have someone you care for? Someone you want to protect? Don't you have any remorse for the billions of people out there who are suffering or going to suffer? When you look up at the night sky, and you don't see any stars, don't you feel even a twinge of regret?"

"Don't throw that bone at me. Asking a person like me if they regret something is never going to work. The simple truth is I enjoy the excitement of chaos. It's not that I care whether KRONOS' plan succeeds or not, but the chaos that ensues because of that plan is what attracts. Otherwise, I find myself easily bored. What? Is that explanation not to your liking? Do you imagine some kind of world where every villain has a tragic past and deep motivation and can be saved if you simply try to understand them? The real world doesn't work like that, sweetie. I'm as plain as they come," Shego said. She sprang forward and threw a few punches, her hands teeming with green energy. Luna attempted to evade each punch, but Shego soon switched her tactic and threw a sidekick. Luna felt her stomach churn as she was lifted off her feet. Her back hit against the classroom door and she landed on the floor, her back aching.

"Oh come on. What fun is this if you're not even gonna attack?" Shego teased. Luna's hands found the door and she helped herself back up, placing her back against it and giving herself time to breathe. Shego didn't let her, throwing another punch her way. Luna dodged again and the hand slammed into the classroom door, creating a fist sized dent. As she backed off, Luna aimed her Keyblade and cast _Firaga_. Shego tried to block with her energized fists but the force was still too much for her and she was blown back.

"Can't stay here," Luna whispered to herself. She grabbed and twisted door's handle and was about to push when she felt something impact with her back that pushed the door open for her and sent her falling forward into the hallway. Turning around so that she was on her back, she had only seconds to react as Shego aimed a punch at her. Summoning her Dream Seeker, her Keyblade met Shego's fists unleashing green sparks between them. Luna quickly tucked her left leg in and swung upwards, using the momentum to catch and toss Shego over her body. Luna rolled away as did Shego and the two met each other in a fierce glare.

"Now that's more like it. I'm ready when you are," Shego said. Luna ran forward and performed a horizontal slice. Shego jumped kicked off the nearby school lockers in an attempt to perform a flying kick but Luna ducked underneath her leg and cast _Aeroga,_ blowing Shego all the way to the other side of the hall.

Shego slowly stood back up and gritted her teeth. This time, Luna would take the initiative. She ran forward, transforming her Keyblade into Artemis' Bow and shooting quick arrows at her opponent. Shego performed a series of flips and cartwheels, easily evading the arrows of light. Once in close range, neither Luna nor Shego hesitated in meeting each other with strikes. Luna counted on her footwork to help her dodge most of Shego's attacks while Shego's incredibly flexible body offered her a decent advantage.

After a while however, it became clear that Shego was slowing down. She was still quick but it was coming to the point where Luna could predict where her punches were coming from. Luna hooked the underside of her Keyblade's teeth around Shego's exposed arm and pulled, sending Shego forward. Luna twisted and managed to land a strike on the side of Shego's neck.

" _Volt_!" Luna cast with her Keyblade still pressed against Shego's skin. A sudden jolt of electricity ran up her Keyblade and electrified Shego. Luna eventually dropped the new version of her lightning magic and Shego wobbled about for a seconds before collapsing.

"Are you okay, Luna?" Kupopo flew up to her. Luna smiled and dismissed her Keyblade after checking to make sure Shego was fully unconscious.

"Mmhm. I guess we should take her to the authorities, right?" Luna asked.

"Just make sure you tie her up first, kupo. She gives me the heebie-jeebies," Kupopo said.

Luna giggled at this and nodded. "Right."

* * *

 _ **Downtown Middleton**_

"We're never going to catch this thing. It's too fast," Kim yelled as they ran through busy streets. Their target was just up ahead and yet still so far out of reach. Along their path were crushed cars and small fires all caught in a mixture of chaos from the swarming crowd of people that were trying to run from the Omnidroid. They of course, were partly responsible for slowing Sora and Kim down but that wasn't to say that the Omnidroid's walking speed didn't play an even more significant part.

"Alright, hold on," Sora said. He pressed his right hand to his chest and drew out a Pegaslick Dream Eater.

Kim stopped in her tracks and looked at him completely baffled. "Did that thing just come out from inside you?"

"It's a long story. Are you coming or not?" Sora asked as he jumped onto the Pegaslick's back.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot the part where you mention you could pull gaudy looking creatures out of nowhere," Kim said as she hopped on behind him.

"You know you love it. Okay, hold on tight," Sora said.

"To wha- AH!" The Pegaslick took off in a gallop before Kim could even properly wrap her arms around Sora's waist. The townspeople had to move out of the way to avoid the incoming creature. The Pegaslick was fast. It streaked down the road like a magnificent blur, its rainbow-colored hair fluttering about gently against the breeze. Then it began to ascend. The Pegaslick's wings stopped flapping and became as straight as arrows as it, Sora and Kim took off from the ground.

Sora looked down to see the miniature figures of people under him looking up as the Dream Eater's shadow was cast over them. He grinned and returned to focusing on the task ahead. With the Pegaslick's speed and flying prowess, they had little trouble catching up with the Omnidroid.

The Omnidroid turned its head and, spotting the approaching Pegaslick, fired an intense laser beam from its visor. Sora raised his arm and shielded his eyes from the blinding red light as it approached while the Pegaslick swerved to the left to avoid the attack.

"Well. That was close," Sora muttered. His heart was still racing from the near collision of the blast. He summoned his Keyblade and cast _Blizzaga_ magic. Large shards of ice appeared in front of the Omnidroid's legs, which it only ignored, walking and smashing through the ice instead. Sora continued however, throwing more and more ice magic its way.

"Um, what was that definition about insanity? Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results? Sora, it's not working," Kim said.

"Heh, it's a good thing I'm insane then," Sora said as he kept launching ice attack after ice attack. Kim wasn't seeing it yet, but she would soon. As he predicted the fruits of his labor soon began to take form. The Omnidroid was moving in a jerky manner and not as fast as before. The ice that the Omnidroid had been so willing to step through only moments ago was starting to apply itself piece by piece to the Omnidroid's legs and when all was said and done the result was smaller shards of ice in between the joints of the legs.

"I mean, insane is good," Kim reassessed. Sora suddenly remembered something but before he could bring the point up with Kim, the thing he was thinking about happened. The Pegaslick popped out of existence and Sora grimaced.

"Uh oh," was all he was able to let out before he and Kim were sent falling back to the ground. Fortunately they weren't too high up but the drop was still painful. Sora blinked for a moment and looked to his left to see that Kim had landed on two feet perfectly. "Let me guess. The suit?"

"Must be. I did feel rather floaty while in the air," Kim said.

"I wish I had a suit," Sora groaned. Kim helped him up and the two turned to look at the Omnidroid which was having trouble moving. Attached to its extended arm was still James Possible, seemingly worn out from having struggled under the robot's grasp.

"Kim, you need to go on ahead. I'm a bit tired," Sora said. He was finding that his vision was starting to blur having used an immense amount of mana, just like the last time he had summoned his Kab Kannon.

"Sora, are you okay?" Kim asked.

"Don't worry. Just save your father," Sora said. It was a strange sensation. Neuge had taught him how to conserve his mana while keeping up the frequency of his magic attacks and yet those lessons seemed to matter little when he summoned the Dream Eaters. It wasn't exactly the best feeling to experience either, but he imagined it was like running a marathon while inexperienced versus running one while experienced. Every part of his brain told him to quit using them while he was ahead but in order for his mana to get used to them, he had no choice but to use them.

Kim nodded and dashed towards the Omnidroid. The Omnidroid moved its frosted arms for her but they were slow and Kim kicked them away with ease. She jumped onto another arm and as it lifted her up she used it as a spring and jumped onto the Omnidroid's body.

"Hey there!" Kim greeted, waving at the Omnidroid's visor. The visor glowed red again and Kim quickly transformed her hand into a gauntlet before meeting the visor as it discharged another laser beam. Her hand shook violently under the weight of the sudden energy absorbed but she managed to redirect it downwards smashing it into the head of the Omnidroid. The energy tore through the armor like it were paper thin and Kim hastened to jump away from the Omnidroid. Rather than exploding however like she expected, the droid simply powered down, ceasing all its functions and releasing her father.

"Dad, you okay?" Kim asked, heading towards him. Sora also got closer though he was still wary of the Omnidroid and kept glancing back every now and then.

"A little shaken is all. Nothing to worry about. I'm the father of the mighty Kim Possible after all. I have to show at least a little confidence in your abilities," James said with a chuckle.

"Well, I wouldn't have been able to get to you if it hadn't been for Sora here," Kim said.

"Thank you, young man. Are you one of Kim's friends? I haven't seen you around before," James said.

"One of her more recent friends I suppose? Anyway, Mr. Possible, I was wondering if you could take us to the piece of heart that you discovered near Middleton Park. I'm sorry to say this but you need to stop all experiments on it. It's too dangerous," Sora said.

"Huh? Do you know something about it?" James asked.

"Enough to know that you shouldn't be messing with it," Sora replied. "I'm sorry. I know it must have been exciting for you to discover something like that but I think it's also the reason Shego and that robot came after you."

"I understand. I can't say I'm not disappointed but you did save my life so I'll have to take your word for it. The heart's at the Middleton Institute of Science and Technologies," James said.

"Your old school," Kim said in surprise.

James nodded. "That's right. I chose my old school and brought some of my old friends while also enlisting a team of youngsters from the school to help make the world's next breakthrough. I'm not sure I'll be able to handle the looks on their faces when I tell them but safety's first. Alright, I'll take you to it."

"Thanks, dad. I know it's hard on you but I'm sure you'll get another breakthrough. It shouldn't be too difficult after all since it's you," Kim said.

"Haha, compliments will only get you so far, Kimmy Cub," her father said.

"Dad, please not out loud," a blushing Kim replied through gritted teeth.

Sora laughed at this and looked behind him for a brief moment before turning to look at Kim and her father. "How far is this place anyway?"

"Well, it's going back down that street and past the school-"

"Great! We can pick up Luna along the way then," Sora said. His voice held his intentions in that he was quite relieved that he didn't have to go any farther and leave Luna and Kupopo behind. He was also worried about how she was doing against Shego.

Kim helped her father up and gave the Omnidroid one last look. It looked almost haunting as it rested there, its arms stretching outwards. Her eyes once again followed the path of destruction caused by the Omnidroid. At this point, Kim must have been wondering what she had gotten herself into. Sora couldn't blame her.

* * *

 **A/N: So I'm pretty sure Jessica is a Disney character. The film was co-produced by Touchstone Pictures, which is a subsidiary of Disney. Even then, still pretty weird to imagine a character like her in a Kingdom Hearts game or anything modern Disney. But that's what fanfiction is for, right?**


	16. Heart of Destruction

**A/N: So I've been incredibly busy as of late (half of which involved playing FFXV) so if you're wondering why I didn't post a chapter last week or in the weekend, just know that probably by the end of next week, I'll be a free agent again. Anyway, a shorter chapter here but I didn't want it to overstay its welcome. It pretty much acts as the conclusion to the Kim Possible world so have fun and enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 15

Heart of Destruction

Sora, Luna, Kupopo and the two Possibles soon arrived at the Middleton Institute of Science and Technologies after a short stop back at the school to pick up Luna and Kupopo. Sora, Kim and Mr. Possible had arrived to the sound of sirens blearing as police cars parked outside the school. They would later learn that Luna had called for them in order to have Shego arrested.

It was a good start, but there was still work to be done and KRONOS was far from over. Sora reminded himself that there was still Dr. Drakken, Yzma, a few more after that and at the top of it all, David Xanatos. There was still a long and uncertain road ahead of them and Sora wasn't exactly sure what would change at the end of it. For starters, he hoped he could be happy.

The research institution was a glass dome, standing out from other buildings they had passed. It looked like a rather important building to stand out as such, so Sora felt he had to ask.

"So, what exactly is this building for?"

"Research, mainly into renewable energy and alternative fuel resources. I don't really work here though. I work at the Middleton Space Center on the other side of town which just so happens by the way to have the most powerful electromagnet in the world just so you know." James Possible gave a wink as if he expected Sora to even know what that was. His trivia was not lost on Luna however.

"Oh, I learned about that in my physics class once. Magnetic fields created through coils of wire turning to generate an electric current, right? It's the same technology that's used to create the forcefield for Kim's suit, I think. I think Violet's forcefield might be the same as well," Luna said.

"Wow, you know your science! You sure you don't want to come work for me?" James asked.

"See, this is what happens when you bait him. He probably won't leave you alone now," Kim said.

Luna chuckled. "Well, it's a tempting offer but I figured that if there was ever anything I wanted to do when I grew up, it would be to write novels."

"Well, best of luck to you on that venture then, Luna. I can tell you'd make a fine author," said Dr. Possible with an earnest smile. He arrived at the reception desk and signed in before handing Sora, Luna and Kim a laminated card each. "Those are visitor passes. You probably might not need them but if we get separated, trust me, you don't want to be caught by security without one."

Dr. Possible soon directed them to the elevators where he pulled out a small key. As they got in, he pushed it into the keyhole at the bottom of the rest of the buttons and gave it a twist. The elevator door closed and the familiar rumblings and strange sensation of moving overtook Sora's senses soon after.

The floor soon came to a halt and the doors slid open, revealing a long blue hallway that led to double doors. Arriving at it, Dr. Possible took out a key card from his breast pocket and slid it through the reader. The doors bleeped twice and he pulled them open.

The room inside possible covered the entire square space of the building. Around them, people in white coats, some young but many older moved about in a sense of unity, as if there was a cause that was energizing them. That cause happened to be sitting right in the middle of the room.

"That's a piece of Kingdom Hearts? It's beautiful," Luna remarked, her feet slowing to a crawl as she stared on in marvel. The heart was a bright pink, not of perfect shape but more akin to broken glass. What's more, it was beating. As it pulsated, it created soothing sounds that reverberated around the room. It was quiet, but not silent and it made Sora's breathing tango in time with its organic rhythm.

"James, you should know better than anyone that you shouldn't be bringing visitors here," said a balding man with wiry frames who had spotted them. His face softened upon seeing Kim. "Oh, it's you, Kim. It's nice to finally meet you. I'm Dr. Eric Hefler, one of your father's work friends. You probably don't remember but I used to come round and check up on you, James and Ann from time to time. Can I ask why you're here?"

James Possible ran his hand through the back of his hair uneasily before placing them around his colleague's shoulder. "Eric, can we talk for a moment?"

"Well, I don't see why not, but we do have some more tests to run on the heart in just a minute," Dr. Hefler said.

"You see, that's the thing…"

As Dr. Possible led Eric away for what would probably be a painful talk, Sora slowly approached the heart, Luna, Kim and Kupopo following close behind.

"I've never seen anything like it," Kim said. "It's hard to explain. It feels like… an indomitable will. Like it has a mind of its own that's trying to supress something within me."

"Yeah. At least we know this is definitely it then. If we find any more of these then we'll know what it feels like to be near one at least," Sora said. They all turned the moment they heard Dr. Hefler and Dr. Possible return.

"You can't be serious, James. You're asking us to abandon one of the greatest projects the world has ever seen and without good reason?" Eric said, the anger in his voice forcing others working in the room to stop and turn their way.

"I just told you. It's dangerous. You don't know what you're dealing with-" James tried to argue only to be cut off.

"Only because no one does. We're talking about the potential for unlimited energy here. This discovery will put Middleton on the map. The kids in this school will be remembered for generations to come. Heck, imagine what this could do for your research into space technology? Are you really willing to throw that away?"

"Maybe you should listen to him. He's telling the truth. You might not know what that thing is but I do. Can't you hear it? That thing is alive. Whatever you're doing here, you're causing it pain. You don't think it will eventually lash out against you for that? You're willingly holding a ticking time bomb in your possession and I wouldn't be surprised if it goes off soon," Sora shouted.

"And who are you supposed to be, hmm?" Hefler asked, his tone dripping with condescension.

"Someone who's seen this way too many times for my liking. If you think any amount of research is going to help you understand the heart, you're sorely mistaken," Sora replied.

"You have no need to worry. Safeguards are in place. We're scientists for crying out loud! Don't you think we know how variables work?" Hefler looked away from Sora and gestured in circular motion with his hands at another colleague. "Start the machine up again."

Hefler turned back to them again and Sora met his eyes with a fierce glare, but just for a brief period. Suddenly, Sora's straightened mouth curled upwards in a move that completely surprised the scientist.

"Okay. You win. Do the experiment," Sora said.

"What… just like that?" Hefler asked, sounding a little disappointed.

"Were you expecting me to do something? Go ahead. The scientific pursuit of knowledge and recognition are clearly more important than common sense. I mean, who am I to stop that? And even if I wanted, what could a simple seventeen-year-old even hope to accomplish?" Sora asked.

"I don't appreciate the sarcasm, but I'm glad you're starting to see some sense," Eric said. "And you'll benefit from this too. We all will."

"Uh huh, sure. In fact, I'm just gonna help myself and take a front row seat to watch the show. Luna, Kim, come sit next to me. Anyone have any popcorn?" Sora yelled out loud as he hopped onto an long counter near the back of the room.

"James, you know the rules. No visitors while experiments are taking place," said the irritated Dr. Hefler.

"What? No, come on, don't be like that. You want to prove me wrong, don't you? That this thing is completely safe? In that case, there's nothing to worry about. Just pretend we're not here," Sora egged him on. His taunting seemed to work on Hefler who looked about uneasily for the moment before turning back to reply.

"Fine, just be sure to behave yourselves."

"Of course. It'll be like we were never here," Sora said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out sunglasses before sliding them on. "Alright. Let's see what you got."

"Sunglasses? Wait, are those- no, Donald snapped those ones. You bought another pair?" Luna asked.

"Why not? Totally a worthwhile purchase. And now he's not here to snap them. Actually, here, you can wear them. You'll look cool in them," Sora said, quickly transferring the glasses over to Luna.

"Oh, I simply must look _faaabulous_ , darling. Now I just need a fur coat," Luna postured with a breathy voice.

"Hopefully they're not made of Dalmatians," Sora replied.

"I thought you said it would be like you were never here," an increasingly annoyed Hefler said.

"Sorry. Go ahead," Sora said. Kim walked up to him and raised a look of curiosity. "We might as well see what they do. I don't think we can get that heart while they're here anyway. Still, something doesn't feel right…"

"About…?" Kim asked him to clarify.

"Everything. The guy seemed to change his attitude completely when we said we needed the heart. Mr. Possible, is he usually like that?" Sora asked.

James shook his head. "No, he's usually the opposite actually. Calm and collected. Maybe he's just stressed, though he didn't show any signs when I last talked to him."

"Yeah, no. Something's definitely affecting his mood and I think I know what it is," Sora said.

"You mean the heart? Yeah, I got that feeling too. It's like there's this burden weighing down on my own heart. So he's experiencing it too," suspected Luna.

"Not just him either. If you've been working on this thing it will probably have affected you one way or another," Sora said, looking up as the room's lights were slowly dimmed. A fine needle was lowered from the arm of the machine it was attached to down to the table where the heart was lying and it wasn't before a small red laser beamed down from the needle onto the heart. Sora could feel Luna shift uncomfortably next to him.

"Reaching sixty percent power. Sixty-five…" a woman in a lab coat declared. She was checking on the machine's meter every so often. "Seventy percent. Okay, hold it."

Sora jumped off from the counter and watched as the heart started vibrating. A faint glow was also continuously spreading outwards from the heart's center.

"We've reached stabilization," the woman said with a smile.

"This is what you call stable?" Sora asked with a dubious look. He went unheard, but he had never intended for the question to be answered in the first place. He couldn't believe what he was seeing that any amount of words that escaped his mouth would have been lost on him too.

"This isn't enough. Increase the laser's power," Hefler ordered.

A man with spectacles who was near him frowned at this. "But, sir, we've never gone any higher than seventy. Any more and we might risk damaging the specimen."

"It will be under control. Remember, if this really is unlimited potential then it'll sustain what we feed it," Hefler said.

"But-"

"How do you expect us to unlock this thing's potential if we don't take risks?" Dr. Hefler turned to the woman and nodded for her to continue. The woman looked uncomfortably at the machine for a moment but soon relented.

"Well? You heard him. Increase the power by five percent," she said to the person operating the machine. The only indication that the laser was getting any more powerful came by the humming of the machine it belonged to increasing in its intensity.

"I can't watch this," Luna whispered. She strode past Sora who was about to call out her name when it happened. Sora had been expecting something because it was all too easy—he had been in this situation many times before where various people he had met had tried to control hearts. He just didn't expect this.

"Wait… no… the machine… I can't control it!" yelled the man in the machine's control box. Sora could see him trying to fight with the stick from outside but it seemed to resist all of his attempts.

"The meter! It's going haywire. Approaching critical!" the female scientist suddenly yelled. The lights flickered a few times before drowning the room in darkness, or almost entirely of darkness would have been more appropriate for there was one object in the room that was producing a bright red light. The light emanating from the heart shone on and off.

"You all need to get away from that machine now!" Mr. Possible said. His warning came too late. Wiry vines of electricity began crackling and whipping in various directions around the room. The electricity lashed out and slammed into Dr. Hefler's back, twisting his body at an odd angle. He fell in front of Sora who stood on the spot, paralyzed in fear.

"Get down!" Luna called, grabbing Sora and taking the both of them down under the counter. She tried calling Kim and her father over. James Possible turned follow after them but a jolt of electricity struck out and hit him as he was running.

"DAD!" Kim yelled. She then turned to look at the machine.

"Kim, don't," Sora warned. Kim ignored his warning and rushed forward. As the electricity leapt around the room, Kim relied on her acrobatic prowess and the powers of the battle suit to jump over and dodge the various electrical vines.

"We can't let Kim go on her own," Luna yelled over the loud gurgling and choking sounds of the machine.

"I know. You bring back Mr. Possible. I'll help her," Sora said. He sprung out from underneath the counter and ran for the heart as fast as he could. A bolt of electricity struck out from his left forcing him to side flip over it before pressing on. He transitioned into a full on sprint and summoned the Keyblade. Perhaps sensing his intentions, the heart lashed out with another burst of electricity. Sora raised his Keyblade and the electricity met the Kingdom Key with such a force that Sora almost lost his balance. Maintaining his footing, Sora took one step at a time, trying to reach the heart. He could feel the Keyblade vibrating wildly in his hands, and there was also a prickly sensation but he tried his best to ignore those as he moved forwards.

"Stop it, Kingdom Hearts! I'm here to help you. Don't you see what you're doing?" Sora yelled out. He pulled whatever strength he had left in him in order to reach the heart. It was a reckless effort, but he managed to pull through eventually. As he reached out with his left hand for the heart, he saw a small beam of light shining from the heart's center. Without warning, the light grew brighter and engulfed Sora's entire vision. All at once, many images flashed through his mind at once; those that were of different locations of places Sora had never been to before. He watched as days became nights, saw the wily vines of the jungle, the skyward castle with its medieval spires, the far reaches of space that teamed dusty dunes and supernovas to the frosty climates of a kingdom covered from foot to toe in snow…

He soon opened his eyes again only to stare at the heart not with determination but fear. He felt exposed.

"What did you just… what did you just show me?" Sora asked in a shaky voice. He shook his head and pointed the tip of his Keyblade at the heart. He had time to ponder things later but for now he had the safety of everyone else in the room to concern himself with. A beam of light shot out of the Keyblade and hit the heart, raising it into the sky. The heart radiated a warm light before disappearing into thin air, taking the bolts of the electricity going haywire across the room along with it.

"Tch!" Sora hissed and held his hand over his right eye as he felt a throbbing headache coming on. The flash of images though gone seemed to still reside inside his mind like he were experiencing memories that he shouldn't yet be experiencing.

"Sora, are you okay?" Luna suddenly asked from behind, causing him to whip around so quickly that she had to step back a bit.

"Oh, Luna, sorry, I… I'm fine," Sora lied. He looked about the dimly lit room. Various other machines around the room were completely destroyed, even to the point of being charred. Crackles of electricity from these broken machines snapped and popped in all directions. Laid strewn on the floor were either unconscious researchers or worse, or people who were too shaken to even move. He turned around and looked down to see a man who was barely recognizable. Dr. Hefler's glasses were completely cracked, not that they would be needed by their owner anymore. Sora looked away from the disfigured man to the machine the laser had come from. Unable to open the door normally, Kim had to smash through the glass pane to rescue the unconscious worker behind the controls. As she did so, the fluorescent lamp above her suddenly snapped and fell.

"KIM!" Sora yelled while running towards her. She looked at him quizzically—not the reaction he wanted from her at the moment. She eventually looked up but it was too late anyway and Sora wouldn't be able to make it to her in time.

"Gotcha!" Ron yelled out of nowhere as he flew forwards and knocked Kim out of the way. Ron's back hit the ground first and he let go off her, the two laying sprawled out on the floor while the lamp was on the ground in pieces.

Ron wiped a layer of sweat from his forehead and tugged slightly on his shirt. "Man that was close. You okay down there, buddy?"

Rufus crawled out of Ron's collar and imitated Ron by wiping invisible sweat and letting out a sigh.

"Ron… you came back," Kim said. "After everything I said… you came back."

"Yeah, well… what are friends for, right?" Ron said with a wink. Kim blinked for a second before letting out a chuckle.

"How did you find us?" Luna asked.

"Wade chipped in after I asked him. Turns out there's another feature to the suit. It allows him to keep track of your whereabouts at all times."

"Oh. That doesn't sound creepy at all," Kim said with a frown. "Still, I suppose I should give credit where credit's due. If he hadn't done that, you'd never have found me."

Ron nodded and continued, "I really didn't want you to see me as a liability, Kim. I know I mess up sometimes and I'm still new at this but I'm trying to be like you. I wish I could be like you."

"Ron… trust me, you're fine the way you are. If anything, I'm the one who still has things to learn—like not throwing away help when it offers itself. I guess I'm not as perfect as I'd like to think," Kim said.

"So… assistant again?" Ron asked.

Kim shook her head. "No. Partners."

Ron smiled at her and she looked towards her still unconscious father. "I'm conflicted."

"Maybe you should stay with him and your family. They'll probably need you now more than ever," Sora said.

"But, the world-"

"Whoa there. Don't handle more than you can chew. Make sure your dad's okay and then do what you need to do from there," Sora said.

"I agree actually. The last time we chased after Xanatos we fell right into his palms. I think, if anything, he expects you to chase after him, Sora. So the question is then where do we go from here? After KRONOS?" Luna asked.

Sora shook his head. "We can't afford to get side tracked. I should have stepped in before they started but I stood there and allowed innocent people to get injured. We've seen what this thing can do. Now we need to make sure there are no more incidents like this. We have to find the other pieces and fast, and then we can deal with KRONOS."

"Do you two ever take a break? You've got a lot to do ahead of you, huh," Kim acknowledged.

"I'm hoping after this is all over, we can have that break. But until this war of ours is over, we still have to fight," Sora replied.

"Don't worry about us. We've got each other. And Kupopo of course," Luna cheerfully said. "Kim, Ron, if you guys want we can pick you up when we go after KRONOS. It might take a while though but we'll be sure to be as quick as possible with this."

"Thanks. I look forward to seeing any plan of Dr. Drakken's falling through," Kim said.

"First thing's first though. Let's call an ambulance for your dad and the others," Luna suggested. As the others walked on ahead of him, Sora summoned his Keyblade and inspected it from different angles.

"You're there, aren't you? Then guide me. Tell me. What do I do? Just let me know you care," Sora whispered. He had felt a third presence in between his heart and Kingdom Hearts' own. That familiar warmth had led him to believe that even if for only the briefest of moments, he managed to establish some form of contact. Sora's eyes widened as he felt a hand wrap around his shoulder. He turned around, but there was no one there. Sora chuckled and looked back at his Keyblade. "Thanks."


	17. The War Against Time

**A/N: So another chapter and this time Sora, Luna and Kupopo are exploring the wonderful world of Pixar's Brave, albeit not quite how you might remember it. Unlike Kim Possible's world which acts as kind of prologue to the series, this acts as a sequel to the original movie. Also, this chapter introduces another familiar character from a different franchise which would probably not have been possible without World of Final Fantasy (play that if you haven't yet), so I hope you enjoy her intro here. Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 16

The War against Time

 ** _The Gummi Ship_ , _The Deep Ocean_**

It was an approximate three days journey from the first piece of heart to the next, which had as many advantages as it did disadvantages. For one, Sora was glad to be able to spend a bit of a break away from fighting and more time with Luna and Kupopo. It seemed strange to think of it now, considering how long they had been travelling before this, but there's was a family dynamic. From his day to day conversations with Luna to engaging in wacky hijinks aboard the ship with her and Kupopo, they were all fond memories that Sora wanted to cherish as much as possible before whatever next chaotic rumble befell them.

If there was anything bad about that though, it was that Sora was left wondering. Ever since the piece of heart in the lab had shown him the myriad of images of the other heart pieces' locations, he could hardly go by his lonesome without thinking about them. It was like a curse had been etched into his heart, forcing him to stay focused. He hated the feeling.

That said, even when Luna and Kupopo were fast asleep, Sora wasn't entirely lonely. On the first day of their ride, Sora brandished the key he had been given by Joshua and twisted it. A single beam of light filled the air that split downwards in a curved arch to form a door. When he entered, Sora found himself once again in the Perpetual Divergence facing a girl he once thought he'd never see again.

"Sora! It's good to see you again," Yeul greeted with a small smile.

"I told you I'd visit as much as possible," Sora replied.

"Indeed. We have a lot of catching up to do. You also recovered the first piece of heart, right?" Yeul asked.

"Yeah, I came to tell you about that but I guess you already got the message. Did Kingdom Hearts tell you?" Sora asked. He looked up to see a faintly visible light coming from above, slightly more than what he had seen when he had last been here.

"Yes and no. It would seem the individual pieces of heart while all connected have their own thoughts and intuitions. The Heartless grew in strength and number because they shared a telepathic link with the Chimera, including Luna. It's the same thing here. A link—a field of communication not seen by you or I. That connection does not stop with just Kingdom Hearts or the Heartless however. Everything is connected. Though we may not realize it, our hearts communicate with each other through that same invisible plane every single day. It's how we're so easily able to form bonds with others. It's just that Kingdom Hearts is able to tap into that field for obvious reasons," Yeul said.

"Well, about the piece of heart, I think it communicated with my own… and the Keyblade's. I saw places, places I've never been to and yet they feel familiar somehow," Sora said.

"The heart must have etched a map of sorts into your heart for you to follow. I believe the reason Kingdom Hearts has struggled to find these pieces is because it is stuck outside of the Realm of Light, unable to make contact with the other pieces. It's also too weak at the moment," Yeul said.

"Right… so after we've gathered all the pieces then…"

"Kingdom Hearts will return to the Realm of Light and will bring with it the true light that will purge the world of darkness," Yeul said.

"The true light, like in the fairy tale," Sora remarked. "Tell me something, Yeul. Are you lonely here?"

"It's not a question of whether I'm lonely or not. Even if I told you that I was, it wouldn't matter. What matters now is that we have our roles to play, and I'll see mine to completion. I want to make the world a better place. One my mother could be proud of. Even if Kingdom Hearts chooses in the end not to let me have a second chance, knowing that I've left the world in capable hands is acceptable enough for me," Yeul said.

"Don't think like that. Come on, stay positive, alright?" Sora asked of her. He went for his neck and pulled off his crown necklace before handing it over to her. "I did this with Luna once. She liked it so I let her hang onto it for a while. I'm giving it to you too. Consider it our own connection then, and a promise."

"I… really shouldn't-"

"It's okay. Leaving things in another realm is… okay, right?" Sora asked, taking her hands into his. When he let go, the necklace was in her hands.

"It is. Thank you," she said breathlessly while looking down transfixed at the gift. Much time passed between Yeul and Sora as the latter recounted his journey over the last year, from his tiniest of frustrations to the happiness he had found. Yeul would simply sit and listen, hardly ever interrupting except for the occasional laugh. Every now and then she would dabble in a few questions of her own when Sora's answers began getting vague. It wasn't that he didn't have anything to say, but he wanted to encourage her to have something to say as well. If anything, he wanted to listen to her more anyway because even after all this time, he still couldn't believe he was talking to her.

"You know, that heart piece…" Sora finally began to divulge after a while. "I feel like it was my fault. Researchers were doing experiments on it. They wanted to harvest unlimited energy to help others. I suppose that in itself isn't a bad reason but to go about in that way was just wrong. And yet, I allowed it. I wanted to prove a point but allowing that ended up getting people killed. I failed them, just like when I opened that door back in the Keyblade Graveyard."

"Sora, even if you weren't there, it's hard to believe things would have been any better. In fact, I expect they would have been worse. The experiments on the heart were making it unstable which in turn had an effect on the hearts of those experimenting on it. What you saw is the reason the Keyblade War began in the first place. Mankind saw something they should not have, a light so pure it put theirs into question. The closer you get to the light, the greater the shadow. If a heart was to come in contact with a light so powerful it besmirched their own, well, you saw what could come of it. That's why there was nothing you could do. Because it was set in stone the moment they started," Yeul said. "And it's why you have to move quickly. We must ensure that something like that can never happen again."

"I understand. We're on a battle against time then…" Sora murmured.

"It's hard for me to say. Time doesn't move much if at all in the Perpetual Divergence," Yeul said.

Sora chuckled. "Ah, so you've got jokes now?"

"Maybe? I've all the time in the world to make them now," Yeul said with a knowing smile. The two laughed, one of which's transitioned into a yawn.

"Oh, I think that's my cue to skedaddle. I'll come with Luna next time, and we'll bring something to eat as well. There's so much stuff you need to try out. You ever had a hotdog before?" Sora asked.

"A hot…dog? Why would I want to eat a dog on fire?" Yeul asked.

Sora laughed. "That's not quite what I meant. You've seriously never had one? It's not a _hot dog_ , you'll see when I bring it next time," Sora said. "Well, goodnight, Yeul. Thanks again."

"For what?" Yeul asked.

"Just… just for being there, I suppose." Sora looked her up and down and suddenly became aware his eyes were watery. He blinked a few times before looking away. He quickly forced a smile and waved. "Until next time then."

"Take care and tell Luna I said hello," Yeul returned the wave.

Of course, it was a lot easier said by Yeul than done. Luna had been pretty irritated when Sora had told her the next day that he went to talk with Yeul alone and had inquired as to why he hadn't asked if she wanted to come along.

"Sorry, I guess I kind of just got a little overexcited. It's just strange, you know? When you someone suddenly appears in your life that you haven't seen in a long time, and someone who you saw die at that. Don't worry, I'll take you next time and we'll even bring food the three of us to eat," Sora said.

"That's definitely a promise if I've ever heard one. Sora, your necklace!" Luna pointed out in surprise.

"It's with Yeul. I get the feeling she's kind of lonely in there sometimes but she doesn't really seem or want to show it. With that, I'm hoping she might feel like she has a little piece of me there with her," Sora said.

"That's a great idea. I want to give her something as well!" Luna exclaimed. She looked down at Mei's crimson ribbon in her hand and clutched it tightly. "One more time. Let's do this."

* * *

 ** _Nessie's Bay, Kingdom of DunBroch_**

Sora opened the cockpit doors and looked past the incoming tides to see a narrow strip of shoreline that travelled all the way across the headland and bay to a coastal arch at the end of its sandy shores.

"Land Ho! WOO-HOO!" Sora yelled at the top of his lungs. He grinned and looked upwards to see a castle residing at the top of the cliff, surrounded by tall trees. He turned around to look at Luna who was controlling the ship. "Alright, just take us around a bit so we can get a lay of the land."

"Yes, sir," Luna said, the amusement plain in her voice at Sora's childlike enthusiasm. As they scouted around the castle however, it became clear that anything surrounding the castle would have to be searched from the ground considering the number of trees. It did seem that the castle itself actually contained a tiny village within its fortified walls. Ultimately, they decided to the land the ship on the only land suitable for landing that was also nearby the town.

Sora, Luna and Kupopo stepped onto the shore, with Luna skipped right off for the sea arch.

"Come on, Sora. Take a picture of me and Kupopo," Luna said jumping up and down like an energetic bunny.

"Only if you take one of me right after," Sora replied. His PHS was already in his hands and having had the chance to play with it while on the Gummi Ship, he was much faster in accessing its functions. There was not a day that went by where Sora and Luna chose not to stop and land somewhere completely random because they spotted something that caught their eye. With the many wonders of the world they had discovered, so too had they taken quite a few photos. It was something they couldn't have down while the worlds were still divided, not that it was a justifiable excuse for putting others' lives in danger.

Sora held the phone up and snapped a quick shot of the two by the arch followed by Luna taking a shot of him and Kupopo and finally one of all three of them close-up.

"I really hope we can make a photo album out of these. They're two good for others not to see. It's amazing how beautiful this world really is and the only the three of us have really seen it," Luna said as the two of them looked through the pictures together.

"Heh, we could start a tourist travel guide. Actually, I know Scrooge wanted to work on setting up something major that would allow for other worlds to communicate with each other because I was working on it with him. I kind of left him without saying goodbye so I'm thinking I owe him one after all this is said and done. Mind helping out?" Sora asked.

"Of course I don't. If it brings people together I can't miss out on that now, can I?" Luna asked. The three of them soon started moving back across the shore to an upward slope that they had spotted earlier. As they reached the top, Sora found himself knocked to the ground by Luna as magic whizzed past them.

Looking up, Sora could see at least three Keyblades trained on them. "Here of all places?"

"Guess they must really love you, Sora," Luna said.

"Hey, they love you too!" Sora shot back. He rolled to the right to avoid another _Fire_ projectile and created a boulder of ice over two of their heads. The boulder soon became susceptible to gravity and fell on their heads, smashing into pieces upon impact with the ground. Luna charged in to attack the other wielder who seemed to fend off her attacks with ease. Sora joined in and held his Keyblade out for Luna to jump on. He lifted the Keyblade up and she flew into the air and came back down in a spinning motion, her Keyblade slamming against the man's own with such velocity that it knocked the weapon out of his hands and cut into his shoulder.

"Gah! You little brats!" The man snarled. Sora ran in to finish him off but the man jumped back and slammed his hand into the ground. The earth jotted out of the land and slammed into Sora's stomach. He felt his stomach churn as he was launched backward.

"Sora!" Luna called after him. When she turned to look back at the man, he wasn't in front of her but at her side. A fist came forward and was driven straight into her gut, knocking the breath out of her. She doubled over in pain and fell forward, at first into the man's arms who simply allowed her head to roll off onto the ground.

"It would be so easy to kill you both right now but why bother when I can imagine my reward when I bring His Majesty the infamous destroyer of worlds?" the man said.

"Stay away from my friends, _kupo_!" Kupopo flew forward and dived right into the man's chest, his pom-pom lighting up as he did so. The man was pushed backwards towards the edge of the cliff. He wobbled as he tried to regain his balance and Kupopo went in for another attack. The man was able to regain his balance in time and slashed diagonally, meeting Kupopo with his Keyblade. A bright purple light erupted from the blade and hit Kupopo, sending him floating to the ground.

"Kupopo!" Luna cried out. As she reached out for the moogle, her wrist found contact with the man's hand instead.

"Still… if I only catch Sora no one's really going to miss the side dish," the man said. His free hand found itself moving upward until they wrapped around Luna's neck. That was as far as they got however, because not a moment later an arrow pierced the man's neck. Luna dropped back to the ground and the man stumbled backwards while holding onto the arrow's shaft.

"Long…live…Horus…" were the man's last words before he fell off from the cliff, hitting the rocks below. Sora looked up to see a woman in a blue cloak which did little to cover her long curly red hair.

"Are you two alright?" the woman hastily asked as she approached them.

"I think so. Where's Kupopo?" Luna asked.

"Your friend might need some help. You need to come with me. It's not safe here," the woman said. Her accent was similar to Hattie Byrne's so Sora guessed the two came from roughly the same area. She whistled and a Shire horse came galloping towards them. "Angus, I'm going to give you these two to take care of. I'll carry this little fella, alright?"

"It's fine. Really. We can make it on our own," Sora assured her but the young woman shook her head.

"You haven't listened the least bit to what I just said, have you? It's not safe. Strange creatures prowl these lands and you're right in the midst of enemy territory. Trust me, if you think you know what's best for you, you don't."

"Then I'll take your word for it," Sora said with a small chuckle. Sora slowly stood up and watched as the woman helped Luna onto her horse before hopping on behind her. "You have a name, by the way?"

"It's- No, I don't," the woman said. She scooped Kupopo into her hand and motioned for Angus to follow. "We head deep into the woods and make camp. It's getting dark. I hope you know how to start a fire."

"So I'm just supposed to call you Red Hair then?" Sora asked.

"You can call me whatever you like. I don't know why you're getting so stuck up over a name. Would it really matter if I told you?" Red Hair asked.

"Well, it's kind of how people identify each other by so… yes? And it wasn't like that guy came after us just because we looked vulnerable or something. They knew who we were," Sora said.

"Fair point. And Red Hair might get annoying so you can call me… Marietta," the young woman said.

"Did- did you just make that name up?"

The woman chortled. "Was it that obvious?"

"The pause kinda gave it away," Luna said. "That said, if you're not willing to tell us your name I'm sure there's a good reason for it. I'm Luna and this is Sora. The Moogle you have in your hands is Kupopo. Thanks for coming to our aid, Marietta."

"No problem. I wouldn't have even been here in time if I hadn't noticed this giant flying bird that was flying around the castle just a while ago as I was hunting. I've never seen anything like it though I'm not quite sure where it went," Marietta said.

"Flying bird… Oh, that's our ship! It's down there by the shore but you can't see it since it's camouflaged at the moment," Luna explained.

"Your ship is a bird?" Marietta asked.

"No, the bird is a ship," Luna corrected.

"You'll… have to run that one by me again once we get to camp," Marietta said. They had now crossed into the thicket of trees and were making their way down the trodden path. "It's unfortunate you had to run into those people."

"Where are we anyway?" Sora asked.

"Definitely not from around here, I take it? Then again if you came on a bird I suppose that makes sense. This is the Kingdom of DunBroch, or what's left of it anyway," Marietta said.

"What's left of it?" Sora asked.

"Aye, a few months ago, they came in and- well they made that castle back there their home, taking the lives of those who used to live there. The queen, her husband, her daughter… all their lives taken in an instant. All that's left are the Queen's sons who are being held captive, though who can say for how long? The man who came in and tore the kingdom apart—his name is Seneca."

"Seneca… and he's a part of Horus," Sora said. One of the guys he had faced back in Radiant Garden had also connected that name to their group and Irva Torvald was the leader of that particular faction. It was worth considering that their group and Seneca's were connected.

"And what about you? You're pretty good with a bow," Sora remarked, pointed to the bow and quiver of arrows on her back.

"That's 'cause I started when I was a little one. My mom used to scold me for bringing it to the dinner table. It was very 'un-lady like' in her own words. Can't say I ever saw myself as a proper lady," Marietta said.

"I can't say I'm bad at a bow myself, though mine's technically don't count since they're guided and made by light. You had to constantly practice though in order to get as good as you are now so that's pretty remarkable in and of itself," Luna commended.

"Oh, you flatter me too much. Alright, I think this is far in enough. We'll make camp here," Marietta said. "Luna, you can look after Kupopo. I'll gather some fish nearby and Sora, you can gather wood to make a fire."

"Uh… you don't suppose you can do the fire making and I do the fishing?" Sora asked.

"Do you know… how to start a fire?" Marietta asked suspiciously.

"Of course I do. Th-that's ridiculous, who doesn't know how to make a fire. But you know, I just… feel like catching some fish. I'm pretty good at it," Sora came up with a quick excuse.

"You should let him, Marietta. He calls himself a master angler. He apparently used to fish with his bare hands back where he came from," Luna said.

"Yeah, my backwater island. So what do you say? Give me a chance to impress?" Sora asked.

"Alright then. I'll handle the fire, you bring the fish," Marietta decided with a chuckle at Sora's reluctance.

"YUS! I won't let you down, boss," Sora said. He walked over to Luna who was coddling Kupopo and smiled at him. "Thanks again, Kupopo. You saved our hides out there. I don't know if you're listening to this right now but you're the best."

"He really is. He's given up so much just to stay with us. We practically gave him a family back at Dumbo's circus and he chose to stay with us," Luna said. "Anyway, you have some fishing to do, Mr. Angler."

"Ha, got it. Can I borrow your knife by the way?" Sora asked. Luna reached for her waist, slid the tantō blade out of its holster and handed it to him. He gave Luna's shoulder an appreciative squeeze before walking off in the direction Marietta had pointed out to them. It was pretty cold out, probably much colder than he had expected and he wasn't wearing a jacket. He shivered and jogged on the spot a bit before setting off at a nice pace down the hill.

He heard the sounds of rushing water before he saw the water itself. He soon emerged from the trees to be greeted by a beautiful lake bathed in the reflection of dusk. The river travelled upstream to where he could see a waterfall heading to the higher ground he had come from.

"Let's see here. What do we have to work with," Sora murmured to himself as he looked around the area. He soon found exactly what he needed in a long stick about half his size. He sat down cross-legged and began work on carving into the edge of the stick with the tantō. Once satisfied with the stick's sharpness, he set the tantō aside and headed over to the water. "Alright, don't fail me now, fish. I suppose the alternative is to just use thunder magic and be done with this but I don't really need an excess of dead fish on my conscience so…"

Over the next twenty minutes, Sora spent his time waiting patiently and catching the fish that caught his eye. By the time the sky darkened and after he had finished humming Under the Sea to himself for the fifth time, he had managed to catch four fish including a rather impressive brown stocked trout that had managed to find its way close enough to the bank for Sora to net it.

"After this, no one can ever question my patience again," Sora muttered. He set the large trout on the side and turned to get the tantō blade only to find that it had disappeared. A slight but sudden chill swept through the air and suddenly Sora began to feel very lonely in the dark. "No… no, no, no. It has to be here. Crap! I couldn't have misplaced it, could I? Where is it?"

There was a sudden tap on his shoulder and he spun around to see the tantō floating in front of him.

"Oh, thanks," he said, taking the knife. As he was about to turn around to gather the fish, he froze in place. His brain had finally started working. What had just happened and how had he just accepted it so easily?

Sora turned around again to see a creature smaller than a pixie and seemingly made entirely of blue flames. His eyes grew large.

"No way… ghosts? Of all the things, why did it have to be GHOSTS?" Sora asked, slowly backing away. He looked to his left where the fish were. If he really only could grab one in this instance, the big one would be enough. He looked back to check up on the ghost only to find there were multiple in the vicinity all in a straight line and leading all the way up the hill.

Sora lit up his Keyblade took a few slow steps before starting to move at his normal pace. They weren't hostile, that much became clear as Sora neared them, and it seemed like they wanted him to follow them.

"Follow the floating lights. That can't be bad at all," Sora muttered sarcastically to himself. In spite of his words, he decided to follow anyway, his curiosity abound. Even in the dark, his path was kept alit both by his Keyblade and the ghosts. When he turned back, he could see that the lights that had led him along the path had disappeared. "Guess I should have brought breadcrumbs."

After following the lights out of the forest, Sora soon reached an open field containing a ring of standing stones. He walked in between two of them and stood in the middle, turning around slowly and looking about in wonder.

"Got to show this to Luna. Wait a second…"

The memory seemed to hit Sora like a ton of bricks. He recognized this area. It was almost creepy how familiar it was to him when he had never been here before, yet his heart recognized it all the same. It was the exact same sensation as when he had recognized Kairi's home world without having ever been there.

"The piece of heart… it's here," Sora said. He started walking around the area, his mind far too distracted with his current mission to realize that the ghosts had long since disappeared. He searched around every rock and then made sure to double check just to be sure but no heart or even the slightest clue could be found. "You're kidding me. It's got to be here!"

"If by 'got to' you mean you."

Sora spun around in surprise to face an arrow pointing right at him. Marietta held the bow as if she were aiming for pray and seemed like she could release it at any second.

"Marietta! I- I'm sorry. I mean, this might sound crazy but there were these ghosts and they kind of just led me here-"

"Ghosts?" Marietta asked. She lowered her bow. "You mean Will O' the Wisps?"

Sora looked at her as if she had grown two heads. "Sure… yeah, Will- those things, right, if that makes you lower the bow then absolutely."

The corners of Marietta's mouth turned upwards and she put the arrow back in its quiver.

"Aren't you a lucky one? Will O' the Wisps don't just come out for anyone. They have the power to lead you to your destiny, or even change your fate, and it looks like they've led you here. So what's so important that you came out all the way here, eh?"

"I don't know? I mean, I thought I knew but clearly not since it's not here. This place looks interesting though," Sora said in hopes of changing the topic.

"Aye. No one really knows how they came about but there are supposedly several others like this scattered across the land. Anyway, we need to head back to camp," Marietta said.

"But I need to go back and get the fish-"

"Forget about this fish. It's your friend Kupopo. His condition's suddenly gotten worse."

As they arrived back at camp, Sora quickly jogged over to Luna's side and knelt down to check up on Kupopo.

"What happened to him?" Sora asked.

" _Kupooooooo_ …" The Moogle groaned as it wiggled about in Luna's arms.

"I don't understand. A while back he woke up and then this happened. He's really warm," Luna said as she handed him over to Sora.

"Oh, yeah, he's definitely burning up. A fever? Wait, do Moogles even catch fevers?" Sora asked.

"Don't ask me! All I know is that it's not a fever. It looks much worse than that. I tried potions as well but they don't work," Luna said. "And I don't know if that's just because the potions don't have any effects on whatever it is that's affecting him or that potions don't affect Moogles in general or-"

"Calm down. We'll figure something out," Sora said. He looked at Marietta. "There's something we can do, right?"

"Hmm… maybe. It just might work, but it's dangerous. I wouldn't personally suggest it," Marietta said.

"What is it?" Sora asked.

"Well, they say a witch lives somewhere in these woods. If you want, you can take your chances and see if she'll help. Even if she does, don't expect it to be for free."

"When is it ever free?" Sora asked. "And while I can't say I'm a fan of witches, if it's to help Kupopo then we'll have to try."

"Then you'll best be heading back in the direction of the standing stones. And to ensure your safety, I'll be accompanying you," Marietta said. "Trust me when I say you don't want to be out at night by yourself."

"Are you speaking from personal experience?" Sora asked.

"You remember those creatures I told you about? Hope you don't get scared easily by your own shadow," Marietta said with a chuckle. Once they were fully prepared, Marietta put out the fire she had prepared and the four of them (including Angus) set off through the forest once more. Not one to put Sora's efforts to waste, Marietta made sure to stop at the river on their way in order to collect at least the large trout Sora had caught.

"Okay, how did you even catch something like this? It's massive!" Luna commented as Sora held the fish up to show them.

"Pheromones. I'm just irresistible," Sora said.

"That's not how pheromones work. And even if they did, if the only things your pheromones can attract are fish, I'm seriously worried for you," Luna replied.

Sora snorted. "Well it caught you, didn't it?"

"Are you comparing me to a fish?" Luna asked with a look of amusement.

"Well, it certainly gives new meaning to the nickname 'Sea Salt'," Sora shot back with a grin.

"Watch it, Sora or you might find yourself talking to an empty seat for the rest of our Gummi Ship rides," Luna warned.

"Alright, alright, I'll lay off my little fish. Marietta, you alright?" Sora asked, noticing that the redhead was watching them with a smile.

"It's nothing. Anyway, let's keep going," she said.

"Sure it's nothing," Sora murmured to Luna before following after Marietta.

The group soon arrived at the standing stones and like Sora, Luna stopped for a moment to take in the ring of stones.

"Sorry, Lu. Kupopo comes first," Sora told her.

"Huh? I didn't even say anything," Luna said.

"Yeah. _Yet_ ," Sora said. After entering the next dense group of trees and walking for a few more minutes they eventually arrived at a small hut deep within the forest. While Marietta was up in front, Sora felt a tug on his sleeve. He looked to Luna questioningly.

"Don't you find it odd-" she began in a whisper, "how we found this place so easily? Marietta knew exactly where to go. And yet she says 'they say', as if she's talking about a rumor."

"Alright…? I mean, I guess I find it odd now that you mention it," Sora said. There was certainly more to Marietta than she was letting on but if she wasn't going to discuss her identity with them then he figured there was really no point in pursuing the matter further. It was ultimately as Marietta had said. They hadn't really reached a point yet where her identity was necessarily important to talk about, or if it was important, they had yet to see the connection.

"Hello, anyone in there? Look, I know you're in there you old hag so you might as well open up," Marietta yelled as she pounded on the door with a fist.

"Definitely knows more than she's letting on," Sora agreed.

"Who are you calling old?" A voice reverberated in the air sending chills down Sora's spine. "And hag? Well, I suppose it does break the mould."

"Um, sorry. We don't mean to intrude or anything but our friend is in need of help and-"

"I'll be the judge of that. Now step in if you dare. But you'll have to make it quick. This is hardly the time to acquiesce for chit-chat."

As if on cue, the door suddenly swung open without anyone touching it. Sora gulped and pointed to the door with his thumb. "Well, she seems inviting. I guess we should take her up on her offer."

"You're kidding right? It's a witch," Luna pointed out.

"Come on. Heartless, witches… are we really going to turn back now just because she can move the air with her voice? Kupopo's our number one priority and who knows? Maybe she's a kind, benevolent witch who will see our plight and decide to help us out of the kindness of her own heart," Sora said. When Luna raised an eyebrow at him, he shrugged and looked towards the door. "It could happen."

"Still, this witch doesn't sound like the one before. That's strange," Marietta suddenly said, her eyes still focused on the open door.

"Aha! I knew it. Come on, Marietta, you might as well tell us what you're hiding now!" Sora demanded.

"Ugh, are we here to rescue your friend or not," Marietta said clearly annoyed. Sora and Luna were left in shock as Marietta walked into the house without so much as telling them.

"Ma- Marietta! Marietta?" Sora called after her, but no reply came. "We need to go after her."

"Yeah, that goes without saying. Stay here, Angus, okay?" Luna told the horse. With that, the two of them ran into the house, or what should have been a house anyway. The floor seemed to break underneath their feet, and they fell. They fell farther than they had ever fallen before. Seconds passed. No, minutes now. At some point, Sora found that he couldn't scream anymore. And when he looked down, he found that he hadn't been falling at all. His feet were in fact touching solid ground. He looked up to see a tiny woman smirking at him from near a cauldron.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did that drive you insane? If you step on Doctor Shantotto's doorstep, do not presume my thrills to be tame."


	18. Wrapped Around Her Fingers

**A/N: I can't guarantee that I'll get the next chapter out before Christmas (only two days left) so Happy Holidays to everyone out there and I hope to see you beautiful people back here once you're done for more of this and Through Smoke and Flames. I know not everyone will be interested in one or the other but managing between two full scale fan fics is a lot of work but I'm doing my best and hope to at least finish Through Smoke and Flames in the near future. Thanks again for your patience and understanding and I hope you enjoy this new chapter.**

* * *

Chapter 17

Wrapped Around Her Fingers

 ** _The Mixing Room, Kingdom of DunBroch_**

"Shantotto? So you're the witch?" Sora asked.

"A witch? Oh perish the thought. I'm an extremely gifted mage, my powers well tutored and long sought," Shantotto said. "Now what is it you desire, if I may enquire?"

"Er- I-"

"Speak up, speak up, boy. I can't quite hear you," Shantotto urged.

"He means to say that our friend is in danger. His name is Kupopo. We're not quite sure what's wrong with him. Maybe you can help, doctor?" Luna asked, showing the two foot tall mage the sickly Kupopo.

Shantotto walked up to the Moogle and cupped her chin in thought. "I see. Your friend's been poisoned, his life slips away. You must act quickly lest you wish your friend not live to see another day."

"Then you can help?" Luna asked.

"Of course I can, my dear. Now whether I will help? That question's unclear," Shantotto said.

"In other words you want something," Sora said.

"What? I never said anything of the sort. But since you've so generously offered, who am I to retort?" Shantotto said.

Marietta folded her arms and looked around wearily. "A witch used to live here. Where is she?"

"Stay your tongue if all you have to offer to the table are accusations. If you continue to insinuate something I did not do, I'm happy to subject you to most excruciating pain possible, much to my jubilation," Shantotto said.

"So what is it exactly that you want?" Sora asked. If Kupopo's life was on the line, then he would rather not bargain in order to help him, but he didn't have much time to think of alternatives either.

"Let's see, that Keyblade for starters should do the trick," Shantotto said.

"Huh? How do you know about the Keyblade?" Sora asked. His hand moved in front of him, ready to draw out the aforementioned weapon at any moment.

"O-hohohohohoho! There's hardly anything I don't know and if there is something I don't know then it was probably not worth knowing at all. You pull forth your strength of heart to answer the Keyblade's call," Shantotto replied, waggling her finger from side to side.

"Then you should also know that I can't just give you the Keyblade. For someone who's knowledgeable about it, you're not really—how do I put it… knowledgeable?" Sora said.

"Sora, please don't egg her on, we need her help," Luna said. "There has to be something else. Our world is dying. The stars have gone out, the past and the present are all but indistinguishable… if nothing's done, then the mistakes of the past will happen again and people will suffer for it. Our hopes, the world's hope, lie with us. We want to help this world but we need these keys to do it. And while we can't promise you the Keyblade, maybe there's something else we can do, ma'am. Something more… pragmatic?"

Shantotto seemed to consider Luna's heartfelt words for a moment and smiled. "I suppose something can be arranged. Very well, though my services do not come cheap, I do believe there's something other than your Keyblades to be gained. I can't very well allow my research to come to naught because of world's end. Therefore, I order you to wipe out the chaos here first that the world might start to mend."

"The chaos? You mean the people who took over the castle?" Sora asked.

"I don't usually interfere with politics. This time, an exception, you are to dethrone the usurper and send him straight to the River Styx," Shantotto said. "Go to Castle DunBroch and put the position of the despot up for contention. Only then can the true monarch complete her ascension."

"The true monarch? But, I thought-" Luna paused and looked towards Marietta who seemed to be avoiding their gazes. "Marietta, you used to live at the castle. You're a princess!"

"Marie- Is that what she told you? Well you might be able to fool them but you can fool me, not with that hairdo. It's good to see you, Queen Merida."

"I'm not a queen and I certainly don't deserve that name," Merida said, pulling her hood back over her head. "If I hadn't run, none of this would have happened. It's my fault my parents are dead. Mum, dad, I'll never get to see them again."

"Would you like to meet them?"

Merida looked up in surprise. "What?"

"I can bring you to them, you know? A swift painless death, to the darkness you will go. After all, you clearly don't value your namesake, so why do you even continue to breathe at all? At what point do you distinguish death from simply being AWOL?"

Merida frowned. Her fingers wrapped around her bow and her digits were pressed hard against the wood.

"Feel free to leave the Moogle here in my care but otherwise we've said enough. Now you must prove to me that the weapon of legends is not merely a bluff," Shantotto said. She walked over to the back wall where many potions were lined up on a shelf and picked one up before walking over to Sora. She popped the flask open and quickly held her hand over her small nose. "Now off with you!"

Sora didn't even need to kneel down to take a whiff of the potion before the most sulphurous of smells struck his nostrils. It was the last thing he remembered before he passed out.

* * *

 ** _Forest Path, Kingdom of DunBroch_**

A groan escaped Sora's mouth as his eyes found strands of green in front of him. He sat up and yawned before looking around. To his right was Luna who also looked to be just waking up.

"How long were we out?" Sora asked.

"Can't really say. All I know is that I never want to be knocked unconscious like that ever again. What a putrid smell," Luna grumbled.

"Well, we'll just have to trust her on this. She probably has ulterior motives but she knows we can't give her the Keyblade," Sora said.

"She's certainly an ambiguous character. I'm not really sure how I feel about her yet but if she sticks to her word and help Kupopo, then everything's gravy with me," Luna said.

"Just make sure not to let your guard down around her," Sora said. "Where's Mari- Merida anyway? Did she come back with us?"

"I hope so. She seemed pretty frustrated with herself back there. I want to tell her as soon as possible that it's not her fault," Luna said. The uttering of a neigh not too far from their location spurred them into action. Setting off through the forest once more, they soon came across Angus who was thrashing about in a panic as winged creatures made of shadow that resembled giant ravens surrounded him from above.

"Those creatures… those are Wraith?" Sora asked. As he analyzed them more, he found that they had eyeless sockets, much like their ground based counterparts.

"No time to hesitate. We have to help Angus. Lift me up!" Luna yelled.

"Gotcha," Sora said, readying his Keyblade. Luna jumped on to the Keyblade and Sora pulled both her and the Keyblade upwards, giving her boost she needed to get in the air and start swinging at the ravens. As she knocked one of the ravens down, Sora transformed his Keyblade in to a rubber mallet and executed an overhead jump attack, bringing the weapon down on the foe and crushing it.

The other ravens flew higher until they formed a spiral and then swooped down in aim at Sora. Sora quickly transformed the mallet into a blaster and ran meanwhile trying to shoot at the swarm. His attacks were enough to knock two out of the swarm but the rest continued their assault. Spotting a tree to his left, Sora quickly sidestepped and planted himself against it, the swarm violently rushing past him like an angry flock. Sora instinctively tensed himself upon hearing their cawing cries and heavy flapping of their wings as they hastily flew past.

Sora transformed his Keyblade back into the Kingdom Key and pointed his Keyblade forward before unleashing _Thundaga_. The bolt of lightning struck the flock, taking out most of the birds though some managed to barely escape the magic attack.

"There a four left. Should be easier to handle," Sora yelled while against the tree.

"Right, I coming your way," he heard Luna yell from somewhere to his right behind him. He waited and a few seconds later, Luna ran past him. She aimed her bow at the ravens and unleashed a rapid fire of arrows that soared through the air in an arch. The arrows rained down on their targets and took out the rest of the ravens.

"Right on time!" Sora called out to her suddenly causing her to jump and turn to look at him. "Smooth."

"Your opinion of me, sir, is none of my business!" Luna retorted. "Maybe next time you shouldn't try and- AAAAAAAHHHHH!"

"Luna!" Sora aimed his Keyblade but his hand trembled. He couldn't get a clear enough shot. A raven had come down from the air and had started clawing at Luna, who could only hold her arms up in response to shield her face from the attacks.

"Lean back!"

An arrow struck raven's head dead on sending it fluttering to the ground. Merida popped into Sora's view as she walked towards the raven, her bow and arrow still pointed at the raven.

"Back away, Luna," Merida said. Luna did as she was told and ran over to Sora who asked if she was okay. She held up her arms and showed him cuts made from the bird's talons.

"Does it hurt?" Sora asked, using his thumb to caress the back of her hand.

"I'm fine," Luna said, though her wincing told him otherwise. Sora looked back to see Merida leaning over the raven. The raven appeared motionless and most certainly dead, at least, until Merida leaned even closer so that her face was almost close to the ground. Suddenly, the raven burst to life and tried to attack her, but the arrow kept it pinned down. She smirked and aimed her bow at the raven, putting it completely out of its misery with the release of an arrow.

"That's what these things like to do. Play dead to make you think you've beat them. Can't let your guard down around 'em," Merida said. She looked around to see the other ravens Sora and Luna had taken care of. "Though I can see you're at least capable."

"Merida, I have… something to say to you," Luna said, taking a few steps forward. "It's not your fault."

Merida sighed and once again avoided eye contact with them. "Listen, I-"

"No, you need to listen. Terrible things happen sometimes, really terrible things, and sometimes there's nothing you can do about them. My parents died too, the difference probably being, that I killed them with my own hands," Luna said with a pained smile on her face.

"What?" The word escaped Merida's mouth before she could even fully process what Luna had said.

"I suppose I should clarify. Something was controlling me when I did it, but it doesn't really matter either way. It was with my own hands. There's not a day that goes by where I don't miss them or regret what I did. A while ago, I lost myself in my own sorrows. I didn't know who I was and I had much the same identity crisis as you're having now. You don't think you deserve your name, but I'm telling you now you're very much wrong. They're a part of who you are, and there's no getting rid of that. The way I see it, the least I can to repay them now is to strive to make the world a better place in their stead and make them proud of their daughter. I'll carry their hopes and dreams, as will I carry my friends'. That's who I am."

"Luna… I'm sorry to hear that," Merida said.

"Don't feel sorry for me, I've done my grieving. Now it's time you've finished yours, Queen Merida," Luna said.

"But… even if I wanted to ascend the throne… just the three of us? Against all of them? It would never work," Merida said.

"We owe it to Kupopo to at least try, don't we?" Luna asked.

"Your efforts won't mean anything if you aren't there to see him in the end," Merida replied. Her brows became furrowed and a small smile appeared. "There might be something we can do. DunBroch has allies, or what are known as clans throughout the kingdom. For example, my clan, Clan DunBroch, are the presiding rulers of the kingdom, or were anyway until Seneca and his men took over. There's Clan Macintosh to the east, Clan MacGuffin farther of that, and Clan Dingwall to the south of here. If we can get them on our side, we might stand a chance."

"Is it even possible to gather them all so quickly?" Sora asked.

"As Luna said, it's worth taking the chance. I'd start with the two clans in the east either way. It shouldn't take much more than half a day to get to them if we start now," Merida told them. "We'll take turns on Angus to rest our legs."

"Ugh, you're gonna make me hate walking by the time this is over, aren't you?" Sora asked.

"Think of it as an adventure. You get to see all this kingdom has to offer," Merida advised.

"Woo-hoo, I can't wait to see green, green and more green. Oh, and gray skies! Turns out it's not just green after all," Sora said dryly.

"I've lived here all my life. If I can handle it, so can you so quit whining and get moving," Merida said.

* * *

 ** _The Frontier, DunBroch County_**

The highlands of the kingdom were filled with mountains and valleys as far as the eye could see. Sora, Luna and Merida traversed from grassy planes to floodplains and damp marshes as they continued westward. The hours passed with the trio alternating between resting on the horse while the other two continued on foot. Farther and farther into the mountain regions they neared and farther away were they from the castle or shore or even Shantotto's. The chilly winter's day served to slacken their pace somewhat but whenever they felt themselves starting to get lazy, thoughts of Kupopo crept back up in their minds and urged them to push onwards with more vigor.

"I can't say I've ever come out this way before. I've always been close to my kingdom, even after I 'died'. I suppose it's true what you say, Luna. You can take the girl out of the castle but you can't take the castle out of the girl," Merida said.

Luna, who was on Angus for her turn, smiled and said, "I learned it the hard way. I just didn't want you to go through that same pain."

"You're a good friend. I promise, I won't run away anymore. I won't insult mum and dad's memory," Merida replied.

"And we'll see you take your kingdom back," added Sora.

"Thank you, but I'm really not sure if I'm ready. At the end of the day, I'm just a girl, hardly the age of my mother when she became queen. What if I'm not good enough yet?"

"You are, that's just nerves talking. I don't think your parents would have left you unprepared for such a big undertaking," answered Sora. "Hmm, qualities of a good queen, let's see… a great smile—that always helps, and assuming you're a good listener and kind to your people, what else do you really need?"

Merida laughed and asked, "Do you come across many queens on your journeys?"

"You thought you would catch me out on that one but the truth is I have. I was mainly thinking of a certain other queen I know when I listed those qualities but I think they apply in general," Sora said.

"Do you think… you could ask this queen to help me in my duties?" Merida asked.

"Sure. Minnie would probably help you if we asked on your behalf," Sora said. It was more a hope than guarantee since, the last he checked, Disney Castle was still not fully repaired after it had been attacked by KRONOS a year ago. He hoped the state of the castle now granted Minnie some leeway to help out Merida.

After heading through a mountain pass, Sora's face lit up at the sight of a small town in the distance.

"Oh, please tell me we're there," said Sora with a hint of desperation in his voice.

"Yep, we're there," answered Merida with a relieved smile of her own. "This is Clan Macintosh. See their symbol? It's a musical instrument called a lyre. Ours is a sword."

"So… considering you're clans. Does that mean your rivals? And you've been battling over the throne with these other clans?" Luna asked.

"It's a bloody history. The important thing to note is that's no longer the case. My mother was quite adamant about forging new relations between the clans and instilling peace throughout the kingdom," Merida explained. She held up her hand and waved towards them as they drew close, signalling the guards to open the gate.

As they stepped into the fortified town, Sora noticed a recurring pattern in the people's attire which consisted of a red and green tartan. Of course, having never seen a tartan before, Sora had concluded that they were skirts and it took every respectful bit of him not to laugh upon seeing men in skirts. Instead he bit his tongue and looked onward.

The trio soon stopped in front of a lanky, thin man with dark brown hair like a lion's. Even with his lack of imposition, the man held his chest high and mighty and his body was decked in blue war paint.

"Princess Merida! Aye, it IS you!" the man greeted in surprise.

"Soon to be Queen Merida, Lord Macintosh, and it's nice to see you again. It's been too long," Merida greeted back with a bow.

"Aye, it has. We heard about the attack on Castle DunBroch. We thought you and the rest of your family had perished in battle," Macintosh told her.

"My parents have. I have not. I'm not sure about the boys," Merida answered solemnly.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Your father and mother were good people, especially Queen Elinor. Dedicating her rule to uniting the clans and keeping the realm safe… it was a truly unprecedented act."

"And I'll do my best to make sure her efforts don't go to waste, but I need to take back the castle in order to do so. It's why I've come here. Will you fight by me and my friends' side to take back my kingdom?" Merida asked.

" _HA-HA-HA_! What sort of man would I be to refuse my future daughter-in-law's request? You have my club," Macintosh said with a hearty laugh.

"Daughter in- no, I didn't promise tha-"

"Excellent! We set forth at dawn. I'm sure you're wary from your travels."

"Hold it! I need the other clans' help too. We face this threat with the might of all our clans, that's how we minimize casualties," Merida said.

"Ah, good idea. Just who are the bottom lickers anyway?" asked Macintosh.

"People who have no right to be here. They're a faction of a group I've met before. Right now they're causing trouble in all sorts of places and yours is just one victim of many, which is why Luna and I have a personal stake in this as well. I'm Sora, by the way," the brunette introduced himself and Luna.

"I hope you're a capable warrior," Macintosh said.

"I'm more than capable," Sora answered with a small smile. He turned to look at Merida as she climbed onto Angus. "Are we going already?"

"No, I'm going. I'm heading east to Clan Dingwall. If we're starting this fight at dawn then I need to hurry. Lord Macintosh, can I ask you to prepare a ride for Sora and Luna to take Lord MacGuffin's?"

"But are you sure you'll be alright by yourself?" Luna asked. "I could come with you if that's okay."

"What and leave Sora by himself? No, don't worry about me. I'm used to being alone. Besides, if I ride fast I should get there before dark," Merida said.

"Alright, good luck out there. We'll convince this MacGuffin guy for you," Sora said.

"I know you will. I'll meet you all just outside Castle DunBroch at dawn then. Good luck." Merida turned her steed around and pulled on the reins, sending Angus into galloping speed. They watched until she had completely disappeared behind the gates they had entered from before Lord Macintosh spoke again.

"I'll prepare a wagon for the both of you to set out immediately. The driver knows the way so if you have any questions, just ask him," he told them.

"Thank you, Lord Macintosh. What will you do?" Luna asked.

"I will prepare my men for the battle. I expect you'll be staying at Lord MacGuffin's for the night so you'll more than likely see us outside of Castle DunBroch at the breaking of dawn's light," Macintosh said.

"We look forward to fighting with you," Luna replied. Lord Macintosh smiled at her and took his leave, departing for preparations. As the wagon rolled up towards them assisted by two horses, Sora let out an exaggerated sigh.

"No walking! My feet could live with that for a while."

"I know what you mean. All I can say is that I'm glad I brought my combat boots along and not my other shoes but I'm still ready to take these off. Heck, I feel like I haven't even had a bath in while. Can't wait till I'm back on the Gummi Ship," Luna said.

"That, Luna, is the smell of the great outdoors. We've become too sheltered. These guys seem to live just fine without it," Sora said.

"Less sheltered and more efficient I say. Anyway, let's not keep the driver waiting… and my feet aching."

A glum looked materialized on Sora's face. "I'm not sure whether that was intentional or not but please don't rhyme. I've had enough of that for one day."

* * *

 ** _The Throne Room, Kingdom of DunBroch_**

June Caster had felt a sense of foreboding, and it with those feelings that she stepped into the castle's throne room. Because she found that her feelings were usually right most of the time, she felt the need to warn the castle's proprietor.

"Well if it isn't Lieutenant Caster of the Red Wings division. This is certainly unexpected. To what do I owe the pleasure?" the king asked. He sat lazily on his throne, dressed extravagantly in a black royal suit with golden embroidery. On his head rested a gold tiara adorned with jade.

"Sene-"

"Ah, ah, ah!" The king interrupted and ostensibly gestured for her to continue, though June was pretty sure that he had really only wanted to show off the gold rings attached to his fingers.

"I have no time to play games with you, Seneca-"

"Oh, that's funny, because I was none too interested in listening to Irva Torvald's lapdog myself," Seneca said.

"I don't care what history you and Master Torvald have had. Chances are if you were kicked out of The Red Wings, Torvald had a good reason. Either way, because I consider all of us, no matter the division we fight in, as one family, I come to you now not under orders but out of concern for your well-being."

"I'm touched," Seneca said, looking elsewhere uninterestedly.

"I've felt a change in the wind. With it brings the seeds of destruction and ruin. I should tell you now that my feelings are usually right. I would advise you leave this place at once," June said.

"After all this. I mean, I admit it's not the most ostentatious of lodgings but it's mine. I took it with my own two hands. I won't let you or Irva take that away from me," Seneca snapped. "Were you not listening to a word I've said? It's not about the castle. It's about you."

"Who are you to care, June Caster? You who have never had to kill just to survive, you who rose in the ranks purely out of partisanship, you who have never had to drown in the shadows while his better half retained the spotlight all his life? Lieutenant, I know how to survive. That I am sitting here on this throne right now is a very testament to the fact. Whichever way the wind blows, I will blow back in equal measure."

Throughout this, June kept a coy smile and only broke perfect symmetry once Seneca had finished ranting. "You're right, King Seneca. Your troubles are not ones I've personally experienced. However, though I may not know your past you're very much wrong if you think that people cannot empathise with other people. You may love living within the confines of the small company you keep, but do you consider them friends? I do not think so otherwise you would not be here by yourself on the throne. You've chosen a life of solitary existence merely to sit on a throne all day. How kingly you must feel."

Seneca snarled at her. "You think this is the only throne I'll be sitting on? No, dear Caster. I will expand my territories claiming land piece by little piece. Meanwhile, you Red Wings have been doing… what was it now? Ah, searching for your precious light. How has that search been going so far?"

"It's difficult to say-"

"So not at all then?" Seneca cut in with a smile that had illustrated he had been proven right.

"I don't believe I said that. We're sure that one of the lights is somewhere in Radiant Garden, we just don't know where. Our main efforts have been concentrated on the castle thus far but if something's hidden there, the process it takes to get to it is incredibly elaborate. More recently we've taken hold of someone who is highly known for his adept perception. It will take some time to convince him but he'll come around eventually," June said.

"Even if you find the one you still have six others to contend with. Besides, I've been hearing rumors that you've had… other problems?"

"News really does spread fast. It's not necessarily ours but it's a problem all the same. A girl with red hair, one of the princesses. She's also searching for the lights it would seem. An entire group of Cephadalus members were wiped out by her."

"By a single girl? Sounds like someone I'd love to fight," Seneca said.

"Just be sure to check what's in front of you first as opposed to what's far, or you may find that that day may never come," June said. She bowed slowly and turned around. "Well, I must take my leave. If you aren't willing to take my advice then there's nothing else I can do."

"You'd be wise to take your own advice, Caster. Irva Torvald is a man with ambition, and people with ambition don't like dead weight slowing them down. I'm proof of that," Seneca said. June merely smiled with her back turned to Seneca and continued towards the door.

* * *

 ** _Abrocaldy Village, DunBroch County_**

The trotting horses soon came to a stop outside the fortified walls of the village. Sora and Luna gathered their things together and hopped out of the wagon. Not unlike much of their journey, cloudy skies and cold, wet weather permeated the fishing village. The most refreshing view of all then was found in the wonderful view of the sea from the village's unique vantage point. As they had to travel up and down a mountain road in order to get to the village, they had gotten a pretty good view of it before night had fallen.

"Thanks for the lift. You'll be staying here for the night?" Sora asked their driver.

"It's too dark to travel right now. Might have myself some ale and get in an early night's sleep for tomorrow."

"Alright, just so long as you don't get too drunk. We still need you," Sora said. The rider held his hands up to indicate that he had heard and set off with the horses for a place to park. Meanwhile, Sora and Luna continued on through the village taking note of the small cottages made of stone slabs and covered by straw roofs that the people of the village inhabited. They were no taller than the homes back on the Destiny Islands but paled in comparison to the better built brick homes of Alexander. Observing this made Luna bring up the potential heating problems during winter, and Sora had to agree that, in this case at least, having the privilege of living on warm islands and having suitable building material was something he was glad for.

They arrived at one of the biggest cottages and entered to find a long table filled to the brim with food. It suddenly occurred to them how hungry they were, especially as the smell drifted towards their noses. Sora tried his best to keep his eyes of the food for the while and instead focused on the man at the end of the table, only to find that he was in the process of indulging in two chicken legs, one in each hand.

"Oh dear. I can't…"

"I know, Luna. Just… let's see this through first… somehow," Sora said as if he were in pain. He quickly strode across the room to the end of the table and stood on the man's left. Compared to Lord Macintosh, the man was built slightly rotund and his eyes were smaller, somewhat hidden under his perfectly stilled eyebrows. "Sir, are you- um, Lord MacGuffin?"

The elderly man looked at him and rose from his seat. "And what if I am?"

"Er- can you not kill me, maybe?" Sora squeaked, feeling incredibly tiny at the moment.

The man leaned forward until Sora could see the whites of his eyes… and then launched into a full-throated belly laugh, falling back into his seat. "Always gets them, I swear."

"Ha-Ha-Ha, Ha-ha, yeah, funny…" Sora played along. He quickly threw a look at Luna who joined him up at the end of the table.

"Welcome to Abrocaldy. Judging from how you walked into my hall looking like a bunch of shrivelled up carrots, you must be plenty hungry. Get some meat on those scrawny bones I say," Lord MacGuffin said. He leaned forward and grabbed two plates full of food before sliding them over to Sora and Luna.

Sora licked his bottom lip and gulped. "Luna?"

"Yes, Sora?"

"What did we come for here again?"

Luna's hand slowly found itself pulling her plate toward her. "I don't know, Sora. I don't know."

* * *

 **A/N: Looks like our heroes have finally met their match in the evil food boss. How will they fear? And do they know it's christmas time at all? Sorry, I had to throw that one in.**


	19. A Brave Face

**A/N: Not necessarily the last chapter for the Brave portion of this story but it's pretty close. Hope you all are having a Happy Holidays and if you're not back yet, hopefully you'll have a few new chapters waiting for you by the time you do return. One thing to note is that we're generally moving from the more structured episodes of the Kingdom Hearts worlds that we know from the games to this rather big open world where everything is connected, like in Once Upon A Time. You'll start to see more of that in 2017 but for now, enjoy the chappie and don't forget to review and follow the story if you like.**

* * *

Chapter 18

A Brave Face

Try as they might, Sora and Luna could not finish what had been placed on their plates. They left their plates somewhat half empty and returned to the matter at hand with full stomachs.

"Lord MacGuffin, we're here on matters of great import. Queen Merida is ready to take the throne," Luna started after setting her cup of wine down. They had asked for water but apparently MacGuffin had considered it a great insult otherwise to not take what was in front of them. As soon as they took a sip of the wine, a very sour taste of plum and cherries ran across their tongues and down their throats and they swore then and there never to have another taste of the stuff any time soon.

"Princess Merida's alright? Oh, thank the rising sun! What about her parents?" asked MacGuffin.

"They didn't make it. Merida's brothers might be alright but she's not sure," answered Sora. "But in any case, she needs your help to take back the kingdom-"

"And why does she deserve it?" MacGuffin interrupted.

Sora frowned. "Huh?"

"Three months ago, the princess left her kingdom in a smouldering wreck. Where was she when her people needed her? Off gallivanting around the forest?" MacGuffin quizzed.

"Her parents died. She's young, what do you expect from her?" Sora asked.

"Exactly my point. A girl hardly equipped to run the kingdom at her age. Why should we submit to DunBroch rule when its ruler can't even fight when her kingdom needs her most?"

Sora's mouth was left hanging open by this and it took a few seconds to retort. "You realize that you might as well be suggesting that she should have stayed and died along with her parents, right?"

"That wasn't what I was suggesting at all. Merely, that when the princess returns she may find that her kingdom yet bears a grudge against her for abandoning them," MacGuffin explained. "So she may as well not have returned at all."

"And let me guess… you'd be better suited to ruling the kingdom in her stead?" Sora asked.

"Not me. I'm far too old. No, that would be my son over there." MacGuffin pointed towards the boy to his immediate left who was just as much big and tall as his father.

"I don't mean to disrespect your son's chances, Lord MacGuffin, but Merida's ready. I heard from Lord Macintosh that Merida's mother helped the clans unify after generations of warring amongst each other. She knew the odds and the people by her side probably told her over and over again that it was impossible, but she pulled through, didn't she? She believed in a better future and she fought for it until her dying breath. You say you don't think Merida can do it, but I'm sure that's exactly what most said about her mother before her too. All we're asking is that you give Merida a chance like you gave her mother before her," Luna pleaded. Sora looked around them to find that the entire table had gone silent, their eyes all on the three at the end of the table after Luna's heartfelt plea.

MacGuffin also looked around the table for a moment before returning to Luna. "You really believe in her that much? How long have you spent by her side?"

"Not too long but then again I don't think that's a requirement to knowing when someone has a good heart," Luna replied.

MacGuffin laughed and gripped her shoulder firmly. "You make a good point there, lass."

"So you'll help Merida?" Sora asked.

"Don't get me wrong, I don't yet believe she can do it, but the greater evil must be destroyed forthwith if I'm to see her prove me wrong," MacGuffin said.

Sora and Luna exchanged grins before the latter spoke again. "Thank you. I know we can't fully convince you, which is why when you fight by her side tomorrow morning, you'll see for yourself that she's not the fragile flower you think she is."

"Tomorrow morning?"

"We need to be at the castle by sunrise," Sora answered.

"I see. Guess I can't drink as much as I'd hoped to. You've heard 'em lads. Tomorrow at dawn, we go to war."

The table cheered and banged their fists on the table. At the first slam, Sora grew slightly uncomfortable. War. It had finally settled in that he had just spurred an entire clan into putting their lives on the line, essentially dying for a cause. Even after hearing the word be uttered so many times about the possibility of a Keyblade war, it was now clear that it was much more than a war of Keyblades. He had thought he could stop this before it had gotten too big, but he had only realized now that he was dealing less with a river and more a tsunami.

As they left the cottage, Sora shook his head and looked up to the sky. "I feel like we've just led a bunch of people to their death."

"They shouldn't have to fight our battles, and yet we can't fight them alone. To be honest, I'm not too sure about this myself. What should we do?" Luna asked.

"What _can_ we do? Merida won't back off on this now, and who could blame her? She has to be there tomorrow otherwise these guys won't recognize her as queen. Like it or not, we may have just put her in a position she can't back out of, though I suppose you could say Shantotto did that first," said Sora with a lack of energy in his voice.

"Then it's all or nothing. I hope Merida's at least doing alright with the other clan."

"Well, I might not know about that, but you know what? I think your parents would be pretty proud of you," Sora told her, adopting a cheerful smile. "You really helped out back there. When you were convincing Merida as well. You don't know how happy I was when I heard you speak out like that. You've grown."

Luna smiled at him and kissed him on the cheek. "Not vertically though?"

"Oh, that will never happen. You can quit hoping on that while you're ahead," Sora said.

"Phooey! Well, there are advantages to being short. I'll tell you as soon as I find them," Luna said.

* * *

 ** _The Next Day…_**

The horses came to a stop just outside of the forest. Sora was first to jump out of the wagon and looked up at the dark castle made visible only by the dancing flames on torches. Earlier on, he, Luna and the rest of the MacGuffin clan had set off for the kingdom and soon met up with Clan Macintosh. Together, the two travelled down boggy terrain and soon reached the outskirts of Castle DunBroch.

"Merida and Clan Dingleberry aren't here yet?" he asked, looking around.

"I think you'll find that it's Clan Dingwall, and I guess not," Luna replied, joining him from the wagon.

MacGuffin crossed his arms and huffed. "Hmph, I told you she wouldn't show."

"Give her a chance, alright? She'll definitely come," Luna said. "Something must have just held them up."

"What if they were attacked by Wraith? It's still dark out," Sora whispered to her.

"We'll just have to hope they're alright. I'm not sure how long we can keep a bunch of bloodthirsty warriors passive though," Luna whispered back. She guided Sora away from the rest of the group before saying at normal volume, "You know I couldn't sleep last night. I kept thinking about today. This is really the first time I've ever done something like this and I… I'm scared."

"So am I. Luna, if it really does come to it and it's you or them, make sure it isn't you."

"You mean…"

"I do. If any of us think we're going to get away from this with our hands clean, we have another thing coming. These are experienced Keyblade wielders, people who are probably far more experienced than us. We can't hold back," Sora said.

"That's slightly terrifying. I'm not sure whether you were trying to comfort me or frighten me there," Luna said.

"Sorry. Well, just remember Kupopo's waiting for you. He'll probably fly right into your arms the moment he sees you again," Sora said.

"Enough waiting! Face it, the princess has run away. If she isn't willing to show her face then the throne is open to the taking," MacGuffin roared. It seemed that Luna was right to question their patience.

"You think you deserve the throne? Pfft, what nonsense. My son is in a much better position to assume it than yours," Macintosh shot back. The two men neared each other, resulting in a stare down.

"Then it's a race to the throne. The one who slays the usurper gets control of the kingdom. Agreed?" MacGuffin said.

"May the best clan win," Macintosh agreed. The two men went back to their clans and Sora let out a frustrated growl.

"Why? Why are they so… thick-headed?" he angrily snapped. "There's no stalling them now."

Luna looked down at the ground as she pondered something before snapping her fingers. "Oh! If we can't stall them then we just need to get to the throne before they do. We'll use the fighting as a distraction to slip by and find Seneca!"

"Right... as long as we get the leader, his lackeys have no reason to fight… presumably. Yeah, it's a worth a shot," Sora said.

"We just need to be quick about it. I think I have a plan. Follow me," Luna said. Sora nodded and looked back as the two clans started marching out towards the castle. They ran in front of the clan and stopped just short of them. Luna stretched out her arms and yelled, "Hold on a moment!"

"Out of the way, girl. We're not waiting any longer!" MacGuffin yelled.

"I'm not asking you to wait. I'm asking if you can let us go in first. The people here, they want our heads. Specifically his though." Luna pointed to Sora.

"Oh, thanks, Luna," Sora dryly remarked.

"No problem. Anyway, they want him. If we hand ourselves over to them, they're bound to open the gates and that's when you launch the attack. It's the quickest way to get in," Luna finished. She scanned the crowd with an inquisitive glance. "Any objections?"

Macintosh seemed to consider this before looking at his rival. "I suppose it's worth the shot. Don't worry, we won't let you kids come to harm."

"That's cute but we can take care of ourselves just fine," boasted Sora.

"Ha-ha-ha, if you say so, lad. Well, go on ahead," MacGuffin invited. The clan scattered off into two, hiding in the darkness of the trees. Sora and Luna waited for them to completely disperse before making their move. Approaching the portcullis, Sora pressed his hands against the iron and called.

"Hello! Anyone in there?"

The guard situated by the gate turned at the sound of his voice, walked towards him and asked, "State your purpose for travel."

"To turn myself in," Sora announced with a cheeky grin.

"Do I know you?" asked the guard.

"Take a good look. You really haven't seen this face before?" Sora asked, leaning forward to press his face against the gate. "Come on, it's somewhere there in that brain of yours. Think, think, think…"

"You! Couldn't live with the guilt anymore, could you? Just had to turn yourself in. Well, at least His Majesty will be pleased. He's been dying to meet you. A lot of us have for that matter," the guard said. He looked behind and whistled loudly, motioning for something or someone. Seconds later, two other people appeared at the gate. "You won't believe who just showed up at our doorstep. The Sora kid of all people!"

" _The_ Sora? Hmm, he doesn't really look like the one on the poster," the woman said.

"Yeah, yeah, amazing how a haircut makes someone look different. Are you gonna let us in or what?" Sora asked impatiently.

"Why? In a rush to die?" The man next to the woman asked. The two others laughed alongside him and the first man moved to open the gate. As the gate slowly opened, a serious expression appeared on the man's second face. "Put your hands on your head."

Sora and Luna did as they were told and the man and woman stepped through. As they moved around behind them, Sora suspected they were about to pat he and Luna down. They never got the chance.

An arrow flew through the air and struck the woman in her back, sending her to the ground. Sora quickly to advantage of the second man's confusion and whipped out his Keyblade, slamming the teeth into the man's jaw. Luna ran through the gate and threw Dream Seeker at the first man who had made an attempt to run for the lever that controlled the portcullis. The Keyblade slammed into his back and caused him to fall just short of the lever.

"IT BEGINS!" Sora heard someone yell from behind him. War cries pierced the silent breaking of daybreak as the MacGuffin and Macintosh clans charged forward. Sora headed through the gates before they could reach and turned the corner to see Luna.

"One minute, Sora. Let's give them the headstart," Luna said. Sora nodded and turned around to see a swarm of warriors filling the area. The Horus members already in the area were no doubt alerted to the loud noise and appeared from their hiding places, summoning their Keyblades and firing off magic against the invaders. This showcase of magic being fired off one after the other didn't seem to deter the warriors, who knew the real battle started once they were within close proximity. Still, already Sora was seeing a lot of falling bodies. Sora couldn't be optimistic about their chances. Luna soon spoke up again. "Let's go."

"Right," Sora said. The two of them stuck to the wall as much as possible, trying to cover themselves in shadow while the ongoing battle around them ensued. They both tried their best to ignore what was going on but even without looking they could tell. Close his eyes; cover his ears if he had to, but even knowing what was happening was enough to weigh heavily on his heart.

It didn't take long before they reached enemy lines, which happened to be where the castle was. Someone spotted them from afar and sent _Firaga_ magic their way. The magic hit the wall they had just passed by and exploded. Though they weren't within its reach, the spell was still powerful enough to knock them off their feet. Sora hit the ground and closed his eyes as small pieces of rock fell down on him. He rolled onto his back and looked around to see his Keyblade on the ground a few feet away from him. He stretched his hand out to reach it but had to withdraw it quickly when another burst of fire hit the ground his hand had almost reached.

Sora reached out again as the man lifted his Keyblade to attack again. Just then a bolt of thunder slammed into the man and knocked him out. Sora looked to his left to see Luna still aiming her Keyblade at the spot where the man had been. Sora stood up and, rather than going to her as he should probably have done so, he stayed rooted on the spot, his eyes unable to leave the excess amount of bodies engaging with one another. They were like limbs melding and twisting together until they were indistinguishable from each other.

 _No, I need to move. Find Seneca and this is over_ , he thought to himself. Or so he hoped. As he was about to turn away, the sound of horses approached. Sora grinned as Merida stormed in through the gate on Angus, with a group of other men fast behind her.

Merida aimed her bow swiftly and fired a quick shot, taking out one of the Horus members without slowing down her horse. She grabbed the reins again and commanded Angus to go faster. Angus galloped forward and jumped through a group of Horus members who jumped out of the way and split in two as the horse soared past them. Angus landed just back on the ground and finally slowed as he and Merida approached Sora.

"Sorry for being late. Those creatures attacked again," Merida told him as she slipped off Angus.

"Figured it was something like that. Glad you're alright," Sora said. At the disgruntled sounds of Angus he laughed and added, "You too of course, Angus."

"You okay, Luna? I didn't come at a bad time, did I?" Merida asked.

"No. Perfect actually," replied Luna.

"Alright. Then let's find Seneca and hopefully my little brothers," Merida said. She began to move but Luna walked towards her.

"I… I think I want to stay," Luna decided.

Sora frowned, having no idea what she was talking about. "Stay? What do you mean stay?"

"As in someone needs to stay here to thin the herd. We led these people into this. I know it's dangerous but it's much more dangerous for them than it is for me. I have an advantage. I know magic. I can pick off a few while they're distracted and give the clans at least a fighting chance," Luna said.

"Luna… no! Let me do it," Sora offered.

Luna smiled at him but shook her head. "Merida needs you. We both know you're the better fighter anyway."

Sora closed his eyes and breathed in and out. "Okay. Stay safe."

"I will. The same goes for the both you," Luna said. With that, she nodded and headed off past them. He could almost feel his heart sink as she did so.

"She'll be okay, trust in her as she's trusting in you. Let's not let her down," Merida said. He had to admire the redhead for being able to move without feeling so much as a pang of regret or sympathy. No, Sora was sure she did feel it, but how she had grown up probably had an effect on hardening her somewhat. If her parents had mingled with such characters as Macintosh and MacGuffin, it wasn't too hard to see why either.

"Okay. You lead the way," Sora said. After all, she knew the layout of her home much better than he.

* * *

The way they entered the castle was a little more unconventional than Sora might have expected. When she was young, Merida used to sneak out a lot and practice with her bow without her parents knowing. The way she did this was through a small window that connected the kitchens to the outside world. Years later, she and Sora found that they could still fit through this small window.

After watching Merida, Sora dropped down into the kitchen soon only to stop in his tracks. In front of him, just past a fallen chair which he imagined had been the result of a struggle, was Merida who was being held captive by someone else. Surveying the room, Sora could see six other pair of eyes trained on him.

"You so much as move and she gets it," said a woman from behind him. She held up Merida's bow and quiver to show them then set them aside on some crates in the corner of the room.

Sora gave Merida a brief look and she nodded back.

"Hey! Are you even listening to a word I'm saying? Look at the girl again and I chop her pretty locks off."

"If you say so, but you'll have to go through me first." Sora brought his foot forward forcefully and lifted the fallen chair up into the air. It soared forward and hit one of the brutes in the face sending him to the floor.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Merida backed her elbow hard into the chest of her captor. She felt his grip loosen and a soft sigh escape his mouth as he doubled over in pain. Sora summoned the Keyblade and swung upwards at the brute who was trying to get back up after the soaring chair had hit him. The teeth connected with his jaw line and flipped him onto his back.

Sora turned and tried to aim at another one of the Keyblade wielders but they were too close in proximity for him to do anything properly. The woman moved in and disarmed Sora with her own weapon before lunging to attack again. Sora spun around her quickly and focused his mana into his palms before striking at her revealed waist. The woman was thrown backwards by the tremendous force and crashed into some pots and pans lined up on the wall to the side of her.

Consequently, all the cooking equipment fell to the floor creating an incredibly loud noise. Merida capitalized on this and put her foot down on the handle of one of the frying pans. The object flew upwards into her hand and she began swinging wildly with it, smashing it into the heads of several of their attackers. Meanwhile, Sora cast a protect spell onto his arm and guarded with it against an oncoming swing from another grunt's Keyblade. He held out his free hand and summoned the Kingdom Key back into it and drove the weapon into his stomach.

Before Sora could pull his Keyblade out, his face was slammed against the table. His attacker grabbed a knife on the table nearby and tried to plunge it downwards but Sora grabbed hold of his hands and cast fire. Immediately the man screamed and let go to prevent his hands from being burned any more severely. Sora rolled across the table to the other side, allowing Merida to take a pot of boiling water from the stove and throw it in the man's direction. He let out an ear piercing scream before being swiftly knocked out by Merida with the now empty pot.

"Just what kind of people do you usually associate with anyway, Sora?" Merida asked. She jumped onto the table and threw the pot quickly at a grunt that was nearing in on Sora.

"The good kind, it's just usually the case that trouble often finds me," Sora replied. He jumped back across the table and was about to pull the Kingdom Key out of the dead grunt's stomach when another Horus member leapt across the table and tackled him. Sora rolled away from him quickly and grabbed a pot, threw it and successfully hit someone on the head that was running for him, and then grabbed two frying pans. He kicked the guy that had tackled him before starting to dual wield with the pans, cutting through revealed openings of his enemies and dodging when he could find a chance. The counter top of the table also served as a wall with which he could kick off and strike down his opponents more quickly.

Soon enough, the combined efforts of Merida and Sora saw the enemy force completely exhausted and out for the count. Sora finally managed to pull the Keyblade out of the man's body and watched as Merida grabbed her bow and quiver from the crate before returning to him.

"Too close," Sora said, leaning against the counter to catch his breath.

"Way too close, but the blood's pumping now. We'd be fools to let it go to waste," Merida said.

"Alright, just give me a sec. We're not all machines like you," Sora said.

"What's a machine?" Merida asked.

"Er, forget it. On second thought, let's keep going." Sora stood up straight and followed Merida out of the room and up the stairs. Moving past the dining hall, they soon arrived in the Great Hall, where stairs going up to the bed chambers awaited them to the left and double doors in the middle of the circular room. Behind them was also the entrance.

"This room… I have fond memories of it. I like to think it's where I won my freedom. You might not believe this but at one point I gave my mother a magic potion that turned her into a bear," Merida told him.

Sora laughed. "No, I can believe it. I've been a lion a few times."

"Really? First a bird ship, then machines and now a lion? Now you're just making fun of me," Merida dismissed.

"No? I don't think so at least. But do tell me more about this bear business," Sora said.

"Actually, I think I'll put that on hold until after we've done what we came here to do. It doesn't feel right talking memories when we're in the middle of enemy territory. I just thought I'd mention it because… what have they done to this place?" Merida walked to the centre of the room and picked up a piece of torn fabric. The torn edges were covered in black scorch marks indicating the cause of the fabric's demise. "This is the family tapestry. At one point I ended up tearing the thing. Mum, dad, I'm so sorry. Your daughter's back now. The bond we share, it's much more complicated than what a thread and needle can depict. Lend me your strength. It's time for your daughter to rule."

Merida may not have believed it, but when he had been a lion, Sora had also been involved in helping king take back his land. That he was attempting to do the same now was quite the nostalgic and funny feeling. As Merida walked over to the door leading to the throne room, Sora realized something and summoned his Keyblade.

"Wait a second. Whatever's in there might be a trap. This'll just take a moment," Sora said. He switched the Kingdom Key keychain quickly with Oblivion's and held out the Keyblade to summon Yuna, Rikku and Paine.

Merida blinked several times in disbelief. "You have fairies?"

"Hey, we're our own independent treasure-loving pixies, thank you very much," Yuna corrected.

"You can magically conjure up fairies and you didn't even tell me?"

"I'm sorry, was there a convenient time where I was supposed to just mention I could summon them?" Sora retorted. "Anyway, you three think you can stay in my pocket for the time being? I'll call you out if I need you, okay?"

"From doing nothing to sitting in a confined space and doing nothing. What a pain," Rikku groaned before flying into his jacket pocket along with Yuna and Paine. Merida grabbed onto the doorknobs again and with a nod of approval from Sora, she gave them a twist and pushed the doors open.

Merida walked slowly through the room towards the chairs at the far end where she, her father, mother and brothers once sat. Now there was only one person who sat in the largest chair, the one her father had sat in.

"Princess Merida, you've returned! Why, I was so disappointed you didn't stay to see the light leave your mother's eyes. And I was almost done with her too," Seneca said with a lopsided smile.

"Your words don't frighten me. Besides, I suggest you move. You're on my throne," Merida told him, seemingly unfazed by Seneca's goading.

"That's it! That's the look. You're mother looked at me the same way. The hatred, the determination… and then came the fear. Your mother showed her true face the very second before her death. I wonder… will yours be the same?"

"The girl you last saw? The one who ran away? She's dead. In her place stands a woman who carries the hopes and dreams of an entire kingdom. She has nothing to fear but the fear of never trying and never knowing. I am Merida, Queen of DunBroch. Now don't make me repeat myself again. Off my throne, thief." Merida aimed her bow at Seneca's head.

"You see, that would present a challenge. I happen to foresee a problem like this rearing its ugly head and so like any great leader does, I've devised a solution." Seneca snapped his fingers and the doors behind them opened. Three small children all identical with red hair walked into the room. Their hands were cuffed in front of them and a man was behind them, the length of an axe rising and dropping with each footstep he took.

"Harris, Hubert, Hamish!" Merida yelled their names.

"You really are the lowest of the low. Let them go!" Sora demanded.

"You thought you could put on a brave face, but I won't have falsettos in this throne room. Let us talk in truths. Is your claim to the throne more important than your own kin? Just how far is Queen Merida willing to go to take back her home?" Seneca asked. His eyes left Merida's and rested on Sora. "And you, I thank you for bringing us back. Because of you the lock on our prison was released. You are the source of chaos and ruin."

Looking to Merida for inspiration, Sora followed her in her example by ignoring Seneca. "So you're going to chop a bunch of kids' heads off? Is that what kings do nowadays?"

"All's fair in love and war," Seneca replied. "Of course I'd rather not have to, which is why I'm giving Merida the-"

"I've had enough of this. Gullwings!" Sora called out. The three fairies flew out of his pocket and charged at the executioner, slamming into his head and knocking him out.

"You three go and find Maudie. I'll be with you soon," Merida promised them.

"Can you guys look after them for me?" Sora asked of the Gullwings. Sora only watched them for a brief second before taking off in a run. As he reached the steps of the throne he jumped and locked Keyblades with Seneca. Through an impressive amount of force, Seneca managed to swing upwards, lifting Sora into the air. Sora hit the ceiling and dropped to the floor.

"Is this truly the one who brought us back? A weak little kid like you? HAH! What a disappointment," Seneca revelled. He looked upwards as he admiring something that was far beyond him and declared, "Feast your eyes on me, brother, as I slaughter the bringer of ruin. Watch as I surpass you!"

Merida fired her bow quickly. Seneca, drowned in his own reverie, had almost failed to notice the arrow. He narrowly avoided the attack and shot Merida a dirty look. Merida loaded a second arrow onto her bow but Seneca was faster, hurling his Keyblade at Merida. She jumped back and fired her arrow at the Keyblade, deflecting its path and sending it to the floor. It reappeared in Seneca's left hand and he began firing magic at Merida.

Merida ran and jumped across the room, dodging magic before retaliating with her own ranged attacks. Sora pulled himself up from the ground and aimed his Keyblade at Seneca.

"I'll show you who's weak," he whispered before casting Fire. Seneca saw him out of the corner of his eye and dodged the projectile. He had missed his shot, but it had done the job nevertheless. Seneca backing away had allowed Merida to line up the perfect shot. She breathed out just as she let go. The arrow seemed to split the air itself, but when Merida blew the strand of hair out of her face, a smile soon formed.

Seneca seemed to choke as if try to get words out but the arrow was too well lodged in his larynx for him to form any coherent sounds. He swooned about until he could stand no more and fell forward.

Sora walked up to him and stared down at his unmoving body with a cold look in his eyes. "Let me guess: long live Horus, right? Don't worry. They'll be joining you soon."

"And so a dark chapter in our history comes to an end. I think it's time we announce the good news," Merida said.

"Well, what's the hurry? I mean that chair's looking mighty inviting, no? I won't fault you if you want to sit on it for a while," Sora suggested, nudging in the direction of the chairs.

Merida let out a suppressed laugh. "Unfortunately, we still have a fight to stop outside, remember? The sooner we do that the better."

"Trust me, I couldn't forget even if I tried. Alright, let's head out," Sora said. He took one last look at Seneca and frowned. He had been expecting something to happen and then he remembered why it hadn't. He looked over to the executioner who was still knocked out unconscious and quickly cast _Bind_ on him before heading out with Merida.

The two opened the front door to look upon a clear blue sky. The sunrise had come and gone and so too had the battle outside it seemed. Bodies lay strewn across the floor, bodies that once could walk and feel and think. It was the exact same thing as with Seneca. The natural process of the hearts leaving the body to return to Kingdom Hearts was no longer a thing. Whereas the bodies should have disappeared, they were no longer able to because of the weak state Kingdom Hearts was in. Without that power to return those hearts, they would be unable to be reborn. Their hearts would wither and become dust. It was much worse than death. It was a complete non-existence.

"Sora!"

Hearing her voice alone was enough to make him smile. He turned just as she threw herself into his arms. He embraced her and planted a kiss on her forehead before pulling away slightly to look at her.

"You alright?" Sora asked.

"I am but… follow me," Luna said. She led him over to the stables where a group of people were gathered. They squeezed through the crowds and soon reached its center, where all the lords were along with Merida. In front of them lay a dying MacGuffin, his right hand being held by Merida's.

"I tried healing him but… for some reason my cures don't feel as effective as they once were," Luna said. Sora walked up to MacGuffin and summoned his Keyblade, holding it above him.

"Heal!"

The spell went off, the green bells appearing and ringing were an indicator of that, but Luna was right. Something was affecting his magic too. It wasn't visual, but rather something where he had been using magic for so long that he knew what each spell felt like and that feeling just wasn't the same.

Sora's Keyblade dematerialized and he walked over to Luna. "Yeah, I know what you mean. I can feel it too. Something's… not quite right."

"Oh, you too? Thank goodness- well, not thank goodness but you get what I mean. I thought something was wrong with me," Luna whispered back. She looked towards the dying man and said, "I'm so sorry."

"Enough with the apologies. You know, this isn't such a bad way to go, all things considered," MacGuffin wheezed. He looked back at Merida. "Besides, if I meet your parents I can tell them that I fought under a great daughter, and a no doubt great ruler."

Lord MacGuffin's body became motionless and Sora closed his eyes. He knew that in the end, it wasn't really his fault. They were warriors, born and bred to fight in the name of their clans. That meant facing and being prepared for a death that could come at any time from an early age, something that Sora certainly wasn't used to. Pretending like he could try and save everyone wasn't going to work anymore. He knew that thinking so would only hurt him more in the long run. What was more worrying was that what Riku said had probably been right. There was a fine line between accepting there was nothing he could do and becoming cold and uncaring. He just hoped that he would never have to step over that line.

Sora left his own thoughts aside as Merida stood tall and looked around at the massive crowd surrounding her.

"It was just until recently that I realized something. I am not my parents. I do things my own way. So if you intend to follow me because you hope I'll continue on my parents rule, you might as well leave now. However, if you recognize that someone can stand on their own, without having to refer to precepts or tradition, then I ask you to listen. Day by day, I feel more connected to this land than ever before and yet this land has also never felt more fractured than it has now. They say that time heals all wounds, but with recent incidents like the stars disappearing and those creatures appearing, I don't think time is something we can rely on. Destiny may be something that runs through each and every one of us, but we can't just expect to sit around and wait for it to come. We forge our destinies with our own two hands. When something doesn't work for us, we _make_ it work. My mother laid the groundwork for us to pave our futures, but what we have now isn't enough. That is why I promise that I will do my best to protect not just Clan DunBroch, but the other clans as well. The stars that often guide us may now be gone, but as long as we have each other, those beacons of light we follow are never too far away."

There was silence among the entire crowd for a while. No one seemed to stir or want to, not until the lords were first to do so anyway. Lord Macintosh and Lord Dingwall were the first to kneel, and then their sons including the distraught Young MacGuffin, and finally the rest of the clans and those who lived within Castle DunBroch's walls. Sora and Luna knelt too and upon meeting his eyes, Sora winked at Queen Merida.

* * *

 **A/N: And now time to be a corporate shill. If you want to hear the rest of Merida's story about her mother turning into a bear, do go out and buy Disney Pixar's Brave, available from your local retailers on DVD or Blu-Ray. It's a pretty alright movie you'll find. Not the best Pixar movie but certainly a heartwarming tale of a mother and daughter bonding. Now that that's over I can get paid... absolutely nothing!**


	20. Serendipity

**A/N: Hope you're all having a happy new year so far. For me, it's a pretty big year in that I'm actually going to settle down and get Through Smoke and Flames finished. For now though, enjoy the latest chapter of Paved With Gold which concludes the world of Brave.**

* * *

Chapter 19

Serendipity 

The castle's walls were alive with the voices and figures of people moving quickly about, tending to the wounded, some even trying to comfort those who had lived under the reign of Horus for the past few months. Sora and Luna entered the queen's royal chambers with Merida to find the nursemaid, Maudie, along with her three younger brothers and Yuna, Rikku and Paine.

Sora looked at the Gullwings appreciatively. "Thanks, guys. I owe you one."

"Well, getting to work on giving us human bodies might not be a bad idea for starters. You know, the thing you promised when we first joined up?" Paine reminded him.

Sora chuckled. "I didn't forget, I promise. Wouldn't want you to bug me until the day I die."

To his left, Merida clung to her three triplet brothers without so much as acknowledging that she may or may not be crushing them in the process. "Were you three alright while I was gone? They didn't do anything horrible to you, did they?"

"Dear, I think you might end up doing more harm to them than the past few months combined if you don't let up anytime soon," Maudie told her with a laugh. Merida quickly let go to see three grumpy and very annoyed faces at her. Maudie continued, "Actually, they didn't treat them all too bad. Some of them even made sure they were properly fed."

"Probably to fatten the three of ya up so they could feed you to the Snuffleupagus," Merida said with a grin. She leaned in to Harris, Hubert and Hamish and gave a quick sniff before recoiling. "And go take a bath, you three. Were you trying to run them out of the castle?"

The three triplets gave each other looks that Merida had long come to believe were something akin to telepathic messages that they sent to each other, before running out of the room.

"I'll go and prepare them some fresh clothes in the meantime," Maudie proposed. As she walked towards the door, Merida spoke out.

"I'm sorry, Maudie. It must have been hard on you these past few months. I can understand if you don't want to work under Clan DunBroch anymore after this."

The nursemaid gave her a sanguine smile. "I'm a tougher lady than I look, ma'am."

Merida smiled at this and the nursemaid left the room. Sora, who had been watching the entire scene, was shaken out of his pensive state by Luna.

"We have to go and see Doctor Shantotto," she reminded him.

"Right. Yeah, Merida, we can't stay here for too long. It feels weird leaving you to pick up the pieces by-"

"No, I understand. I understood just by fighting with you how big your fight really is. It's much bigger than just this. I'm so glad I met you two. I wonder if we'll cross paths again," Merida said.

"Definitely. Whether it'll be soon though? I can't say. We still have a lot of work to do. Still, if you think that us meeting you this time was a fateful encounter then look forward to the next one. I have a feeling our paths will cross again," Sora said.

"I look forward to it. I'll keep the both of you in my thoughts until then," Merida said as she hugged Luna. After exchanging a quick hug with Merida (in which Sora was very much aware of how long he should be hugging another girl in front of his girlfriend for), he and Luna set of down the corridor once more.

"You know, I have to wonder—just why did Horus come here in the first place?" Luna asked. "Did they just decide to themselves, 'time for a property acquisition!' or something like that?"

"Well, it IS a castle. Maybe it was that," replied Sora.

"I guess…" Luna ended with. Though their conversation on the matter ended there, he could definitely tell that something was still troubling her about it. Could a deeper meaning lie behind Horus' appearance here? Sora certainly wouldn't have put it past them, but worrying about it now wouldn't do much good. It was time to get their friend back.

* * *

The more steps he took towards Shantotto's shack, the more uneasy Sora felt about Kupopo's fate. Snow was starting to fall and surely that was a sign of good things to come, and yet he didn't quite feel in the mood. He supposed he could also attribute that to the large battle he had just thought, and how draining, both physically and emotionally, it had been for him.

He didn't want to admit it but he was starting to wonder just how far he could go. It was not so long that he had thought of abandoning the Keyblade and living an ordinary life. It had been his choice and though he had later reneged on it, it had at least been nice to know he had that brief period of relaxation. Nowadays, he wasn't sure he even had that choice. He looked over at Luna who seemed fully focused on their goal. As long as he had her and his other friends, he didn't have to feel alone in this. The problem was that only Luna was here by his side right now.

They soon reached the cottage where Shantotto lived and opened the door to immediately find themselves back in the Mixing Room. Sora raised a brow in confusion.

"Wait a second… didn't we fall the last we came here?"

"The same thing twice gets so boring, don't you think? I like changing things up, so now the door simply connects the outside world to this one in a flawless interlink," Shantotto explained.

"So this place is in a different dimension or something?" Luna asked.

"Hmm, I wonder…" Shantotto teased with a smug smile.

"So where's Kupopo? We did what you asked," Sora said.

The smile faded from Shantotto's face. "I know. Alas, your friend did not make it."

Fear and panic overtook Sora's eyes and he walked over to Shantotto. "What did you say?"

"No…" Luna whispered, hugging her arms tightly.

"Your friend's actions to save you were his swansong. You simply took too long," Shantotto said.

"I… took too long? Too long?" Sora seethed through gritted teeth. A bubbling anger rose to the surface and completely overwhelmed his other senses. He summoned his Keyblade and pointed it at Shantotto. "In other words, you could have helped but you didn't."

"Now why would I save him before you upheld your end of the bargain? That's not how transactions work and you should have easily understood that, for this exchange required no jargon."

"You're playing with lives, don't you understand that? Do you even have a sensitive bone in that body of yours?" Sora yelled. He felt like his anger was the only thing keeping him standing right now. "We went out there. We gathered people to help us. We fought. Some of us died. Do you understand, doctor?"

"That you sacrificed many just to save one? Why, I don't recall that being part of the stipulation, hun," Shantotto said.

"Damn you!" Sora cursed and swung his Keyblade at Shantotto. The tiny mage crossed her arms and a bright white light appeared for a split second as the Keyblade met her wrists. Suddenly Sora was lifted into the air and crashed into the wall.

"Sora!" Luna yelled. She made to summon her Keyblade but a giant shard of ice rose up from the ground in front of her, throwing her off balance.

"If you intend to continue with this reckless course of abandon then you leave me with no choice. You may not believe it but my impressive powers can compensate for what seem deem a tiny voice. There are only so few in the world who can match my skill. So when you face me, I just hope you know that from here it only goes downhill. O-hohohohohoho!" Shantotto laughed and raised her right hand. She lowered it down towards Sora. " _Firaga_."

" _Reflect_!" Sora cast as the spell flew towards him. He felt himself pushed into the wall by the force of the blast. When he tried to move his head it was as if an invisible hand was keeping it locked in place against the wall. The magic soon finished and his cracked shield shattered into pieces.

What had she just cast? It certainly wasn't _Firaga_. His didn't look like that anyway, nor was it capable of smashing into someone with such a force as this. Sora stood up on wobbly knees and shot a quick look at Shantotto as she snapped her fingers. Water rushed from under Luna's feet and formed a giant sphere, trapping her in it. Luna gasped and clutched at her neck, kicking and moving about in a panic as the water sphere was raised upwards in the air.

"Luna! Shantotto, please, I get it. You win. Just let her go, please," Sora begged.

Shantotto tutted and wagged her finger from side to side. "Hmm, I'm afraid I'll need a bit more convincing than that."

"What do you want from me? I-" Sora quickly got to his knees and lowered his head. "I'm sorry, you're right, you're right about everything. It is my fault. It's my fault the world is the way it is now and it's my fault sending the people dying will never be reunited with their loved ones. It's because I'm weak, alright? Please stop."

Shantotto snorted and lifted the spell, sending Luna falling to the ground. "Oh, that was desperate. I really was only expecting a "you're the best" or something, but that works too. The look on your face… oh, I just can't take it anymore, the charade must fall through."

"What?" Sora whispered. Shantotto clapped her hands and with a poof, a moogle appeared buzzing about excitedly. "Kupopo?"

"Did you miss me, kupo? _Luuuuunaaaaaaaa_ …." Kupopo flew right into the soaking wet girl's chest once again as she was trying to sit up.

Luna looked at the moogle in confusion. "Huh? Kupopo, but how are you-"

"I lied," Shantotto said simply.

It was at this point in time when Sora realized Shantotto true nature. She could make anyone look like a fool and get away with it. She had deliberately baited him into attacking and in the end she had come out all the more satisfied for it. It was hubris and she took aware in it, but she was also infallible to whatever fall that might follow as well.

"But why?" Sora asked.

"Because I wanted to test your powers and confirm something I already know. From Kingdom Hearts, does your strength flow. The root of your magic is strangled and deprived. What you need is a resource to make your mana thrive," Shantotto said.

"Wait, you mean that the heart of all worlds is how we channel- how everyone channels their magic, and because it's not at full power at the moment, our magic is getting weaker," Luna said.

"Makes sense. That explains why our cure magic hasn't seemed as effective as it usually is. My reflect magic didn't seem all too great either, but my other elemental attacks don't really seem affected yet," Sora said.

"If you've been using low-tier magic I wouldn't expect you to notice those yet. Now, Firaga, Thundaga… those are the ones you find will cause quite an upset. First comes third tier, then comes second and finally the first until you'll feel nothing at all. No joy, no anger, not even sorrow. When the magic dies, so too does the emotions associated with that magic," Shantotto explained.

Sora looked at Luna and said, "Then if we don't find these pieces of heart, we'll lose all our magic and eventually our emotions too. It's not like a Nobody who's capable of growing another heart. Our hearts are still inside us, and we can't replace them."

"But Shantotto, you're magic doesn't seem downgraded at all. In fact, it's pretty insane if I do say myself," Luna pointed out.

"I don't draw my power the same way you do. An ancient way of channelling runs through these veins. This, I pieced my teachings together through various scriptures' remains. I suppose you want me to teach you?" Shantotto deduced.

"Well, sure. If there's a way to use magic without relying on how we usually do it, it's worth checking out," Sora said. "And if we get magic as powerful as yours, that's a bonus."

"I'm sorry but never could obtain this kind of power, even in your wildest dreams. Perfection is not something that can be simply woven at the seams; unless you're me of course in which case it comes naturally." Shantotto walked over to her shelf of potions and selected a flask from the second lowest shelf. "If you drink this, it should allow your mana to break its glass ceiling. Unbound by restrictions, you should start to sense a tingly feeling."

"Wait a second. I'm not necessarily doubting you. You did save Kupopo after all even if you… went about a completely odd way, but why do you know all this? Kingdom Hearts, the Keyblade…"

Shantotto shook her head and held out the potion. "Now what did your teachers tell you at school? Ask a silly question…"

"Because it's you, right? Well, at least I know what my gym teacher used to tell me. What doesn't kill me…" Sora took the potion into his hand and inspected it quickly. "Hopefully isn't a trap by a mad genius to kill me."

He drank quickly from the flask before handing it to Luna. Surprisingly, whatever he had just downed had a surprisingly sour taste, like cranberry juice.

"Urgh, it's bitter…" Luna stuck her tongue out after tasting it as well.

"No one ever said the best things for you tasted nice. Perhaps you would have preferred had I added sugar to sweeten the taste but this will have to suffice," Shantotto remarked as she took the empty flask back from Luna.

"Shantotto, you wouldn't happen to know about pieces of heart, would you?" Sora asked.

"Hmm? No, but do tell," Shantotto said.

"I mean, you were talking about magic and how it's accessed through a certain source. Well, that certain source is damaged and we need to find what are called pieces of heart in order to fix it. One of those pieces happen to be somewhere here but we have no idea where to look," Sora said.

"You face quite the conundrum. Fortunately, I have just the rumor in mind that can cut short the humdrum."

* * *

 ** _The Standing Stones, The Kingdom of DunBroch_**

 _As the horizon glows on stony-faced grounds, the key unlocks the way_. This rather vague hint offered by Shantotto led her, Sora, Luna and Kupopo to the ring of stones where the Will O' the Wisps had first taken Sora. He supposed Merida really had been right about his fate being drawn towards those stones.

"You know, I think I'm starting to get that tingly feeling," Luna told them as they neared the stones.

"Yeah, me too. That or I might need the toilet," Sora quipped. Luna rolled her eyes at him and he sighed. "T-that was a joke."

"Leave the jokes to the professionals, dear," Shantotto said. "Ah! We're here."

The four of them reached the middle of the ring and Sora summoned his Keyblade and held it out in front of him, gripping the handle with both hands. He looked up to see the sun hanging low in the horizon and then returned his gaze to the Keyblade. The wind suddenly began to pick up and Sora instinctively squinted as it hit his face. A crown soon appeared beneath him and he flipped the Keyblade upside down before stabbing it into the ground. A burst of light radiated forth and hit all of the stones around him at once, lighting them up simultaneously.

The crown and light on the stones soon disappeared and the ground under him started to shake. Sora backed away slowly for a moment—just a moment—at which point he saw the ground start to give way and he took off into a full on run. He rejoined Luna, Shantotto and Kupopo just outside of the ring and looked back to see a staircase going down through the rectangular hole he had made in the ground.

"Well, I guess you could say that was a pretty earth-shattering revelation," Luna said.

"I would have gone with groundbreaking, but yours works too," Sora replied.

"Well, shall we?" Shantotto smiled at them and began her usual bounce down the stairs. Knowing that their chances of survival were dramatically increased by being near the tiny mage, Sora, Luna and Kupopo quickly followed in her wake.

"So what are we expecting?" Sora asked as they climbed down. "Secret alien civilization? Evil monster that's been sucking the world dry of its life energy?"

"You have an overactive imagination. I won't be anything as exciting as that," Luna dismissed.

"Maybe it's a pirate king's legendary stash of treasure, kupo!" Kupopo hoped.

"You know, that wouldn't be too bad. Maybe we could use it to help Merida rebuild her kingdom," Sora said.

Kupopo blinked and laughed awkwardly. "Sure… that's totally what I was thinking of doing with it, kupo."

They soon reached the bottom and entered the small room ahead of them to find a stone coffin in the middle and something else floating above it.

"The heart!" Luna exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah." Sora summoned the Keyblade again and held it up at the heart. A beam of light burst forth from the tip and struck the heart, causing it to rise up past the ceiling. Sora let the Keyblade vanish and looked at Shantotto who was over by the coffin. She had completely ignored the heart and instead her eyes had been glued to the coffin the entire time. "So what's this coffin about?"

"This, my dear apprentice researchers, is history. All you need is look here to uncover the mystery," Shantotto said, pointing to an insignia embedded on the coffin's side. Sora knelt down and pressed his hand against it, moving downwards.

"This eye… I know this symbol! This was the same eye on Xehanort's Keyblade, on Seneca's as well. But why?"

"The plot thickens," Shantotto said.

Sora thought about it for a moment. It wasn't just those two who he had seen with that eye either. Riku's Keyblade also had one as well. While he couldn't think of anything that tied Riku to Seneca, there was plenty that tied Riku to Xehanort. As for Xehanort and Seneca, he could only think of one thing.

"Horus... that's it! That's the connection!" Sora yelled with a grin on his face.

"Um, sorry? Mind explaining to the rest of us who don't understand?" Luna asked.

"Remember back in Radiant Garden when we fought Abraxas? You were unconscious for a while but just before you woke up Abraxas unleashed the part of Xehanort that was inside him. He mentioned something about Horus and how… he was assigned a mission from birth. Let's say he wanted to restart the Keyblade War in order to unlock the seal on Kingdom Hearts and bring Horus back. In the end, I guess I helped him out on that anyway but getting back to it, this eye is on Xehanort's Keyblade, it's on Seneca's, and it's on Riku's. This symbol belongs to Horus."

Luna's mouth parted and she smiled. "Ah, I see… but wait, why would it be on Riku's?"

"At one point, Xehanort was manipulating Riku. It's in Jiminy's Journal, remember?"

"Yeah… Riku also told me about it. Okay, so it's Horus'. I guess the next question is what's inside," Luna said.

Sora nodded and grabbed the edges of the coffin's case. He tried to pull the cover but not a single inch budged no matter how much force he exerted.

"Darn, not even a smidge," Sora said, letting his arms rest on the coffin.

"You have a key," Shantotto reminded him with an annoyed look.

"Oh, right," Sora said. Even without her words, there was something about the chiding look Shantotto gave him that made him feel like a complete idiot and want to grin like an idiot too. He summoned the Keyblade and pointed it at the coffin, shooting a beam out that hit the eye.

"A lot of work for a coffin," Luna said.

"All the more reason to defile it," Sora said. Following this, there was the sound of a click and Sora wrapped his hands around the cover once more. This time, little effort was required to slide the coffin's cover out of the way. Stored up dust of many years escaped all at once and Sora coughed, waving the dust away with his hand.

"What's in there?" Shantotto asked, trying to tiptoe to look inside the coffin.

"Well, if you're expecting any skeletons in here, I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed. It's as empty as Luna's humor."

Luna peered into the coffin and looked at Shantotto. "Hm, it's true. Well, except for this little thing here. Not so empty, eh?"

"I said _as_ ," Sora pointed out. He picked up the roll of parchment from inside the coffin and opened it. It smelt old and musty but Sora tried his best to ignore the smell as he scanned through the words on the parchment. "It's a letter. Strange. I wonder if it the recipient ever got it, otherwise it's strange that you'd write a letter and never send it or want the other person to know about it."

"Or maybe someone didn't want that person to know about it," Luna guessed. "What if someone was here before us?"

"Doesn't really matter. When they were here could have been any time from after this place was built to today. I wouldn't think too much on it," Sora said, looking down at the paper. "The letter's from someone named Pandora... Oh, she was a seer!" Sora told them. He had managed to figure out as much from the first few lines: " _From mine eyes that see backwards and forwards to yours ever looking onward_ …"

"So this is her coffin then?" Luna asked.

"I… can't really say for sure. Let's see what else it says," Sora said, looking back down at the parchment:

 _From mine eyes that see backwards and forwards to yours ever looking onward, heed these words. I come to you with a heavy heart—one burdened by grief and regret. It's my fault. The end of the world is coming and it is entirely my fault. It is strange to think that one person has the potential to kill all of humanity but I am proof that it is easier than you think. Mere curiosity can give way to calamity. No, that's not quite right. I suppose it is more accurate to say that the world was fine the way it is, and I am calamity. I am the chaos that blows through the wind, the thunderous storms that rage across the sky, that which turns summer to winter._

 _My request is simple. Became the opposite of that which I am. Become the tiny rays of light that pierce the skies, the gentle breeze that tickles the grass, the intermediary spring that leads back to summer. I know you have grieved yourself and if you so undertake this task, you may at times find yourself the world's friend, and its enemy. If my visions prove true however, then you will not have to suffer the road ahead alone. I know losing Moira was too much to bear but you must push forward and believe in humanity. As long as belief in others triumphs over fear, hope can always be born and so too will light continue to thrive. If we keep this in mind, I truly believe this world can be saved._

 _Your Ever Faithful Friend,_

 _Pandora_

"Moira?" Luna called out the name that stood out to her.

"That's quite the stretch. There are a lot of Moiras out there," Sora said. "I mean if you're suggesting what I think you are then… you're saying this is a letter to the leader of Moira's Crescent?"

"Well he is immortal, right?" Luna asked.

"I guess…" Sora said uneasily. While he couldn't afford to think about another confrontation with Kohle what with the pieces of heart taking more of a priority, he hoped that if he had to face off against Moira's Crescent's leader again, it would be later rather than sooner. "You know what? We can ask Yeul about him. She was with Moira's Crescent for a while anyway. If we could find a way to get rid of his immortality, we'd at least stand a decent chance."

"Immortality, you say?" Shantotto asked, her interest piqued.

"Have you been researching it, Doctor Shantotto?" Luna asked.

"Oh, I am far beyond such a whimsical fantasy. Most who go in pursuit of such knowledge cannot hope to preserve their sanity. Live for today knowing that tomorrow may be your last, reach for the sky without dwelling on the past. When fate conspires to throw you off course, you fight back with just as much force. To live until you die is a thrill that simply cannot be missed. Besides, the most satisfying things in life are often found by chance. Still, if a man has suffered immortality's toils, why not take advantage of knowledge's spoils?"

"Err, even if he were willing to give you what you wanted, you'd have to actually find him first," Sora pointed out.

"Once again it appears you underestimate me. I found you, didn't I?" Shantotto said.

"Actually, you'll find that we found _you_ ," Sora corrected. Shantotto chuckled at this, a motion which made Sora doubt himself. Or maybe it was Shantotto being Shantotto once again, in which case he ought to pay her no mind at all.

"So, just ignoring the letter for a second, do you think Horus was here because they were looking for this place?" Luna asked.

Sora looked down at the musty old parchment in his hand and said, "Well, assuming they weren't just looking for the piece of heart, they're gonna be disappointed. Nothing here but that and a letter. Huh?"

 ** _Flashback_**

 _The world turned as I did. The motions were like those of a rickety vessel on the ocean. If I were to listen closely I would easily be able to pick out the creaking of wood. Listen even closer and I might have been able to discern a pattern for these creaks. At least that would have kept me preoccupied… but I didn't want to listen. I just didn't want to be here._

 _I looked up to see my peers, a few of my fellow classmates who, like me, had been stranded on this boat for a long time. For how long? I had no idea. There was no need for time on a boat. Perhaps in the captain had a clock in his quarters, useful for telling the time of departure and that of arrival. For us, there was nothing. There was only where we had come from and where we were going. Where we had come from? We were just school children thinking that our day would be a day like any other. Where we going? I have no idea. They never told us._

 _The first day of our voyage was filled with constant crying. We all wanted to go home. We wanted to see our parents again, our brothers and sisters, our teachers, other school friends, just about anyone that we knew in our day to day lives. That day came and went, and it became clear to most of us that no help would be coming. That we were on our own. There was no land around us and therefore no escape. Hope was starting to fade. Hope that we would see our loved ones again, hope that would never escape the clutches of the people—whoever they are—that have taken us from our homes._

 _I rest my head against my friend, Pandora. She, like I, am usually quiet in class, and I often keep myself preoccupied with other things. This time I don't even have my sketchbook or any coloring pencils to draw with. Pandora however is particularly strange in that she claims sometimes to see things that don't make sense, like future events and stuff. Of course she's never mentioned it to anyone else besides me, of course. The others would pick on her for saying something like that. As for how I feel about it, I'm not entirely sure. It seemed a little farfetched but from how she explains things, she seems to really believe what she's saying. That she belongs to a tribal group of people from a place called Atlantis called Seers and that they've had to move several times because those without that power tend to often exploit them._

" _Do you think we'll reach land soon?" she suddenly asked me. I look up at her for a moment and take in her appearance: her pale yet beautiful skin, long brown hair and honey-glazed eyes. For whatever reason, she seemed to give off more strength than anyone else in the entire room._

" _Even if we do get off, what do we have waiting for us?" I asked._

 _There was a pause where I could almost feel Pandora thinking about her answer. "Whatever it is, I'm glad you're here with me. I know that seems selfish but-"_

" _No, I'm glad I'm here with you too! As soon as we reach land we'll run when they're not looking and find help. There has to be someone nearby," I told her. I didn't even realize how eager I was getting over a plan I had just come up with._

" _Do you think so?"_

" _I know so. They can't keep their eyes on all us. We'll stay slightly behind and slip away when we find the right time. Agreed?" I asked._

 _Pandora smiled back at me and nodded._

 ** _End Flashback_**

By the time Sora opened his eyes again, a tear had rolled down his cheek. He blinked and looked at Luna who was looking at him with a concerned look in her eyes.

"Sora, are you okay?" she asked.

"I- I think. What in the…" Sora trailed off and looked back down at the letter. What had he just seen?

* * *

 **A/N: Hope the sudden first person POV didn't suddenly weird you out, though if it did that's good too. That was intended. Anyway, join us next time when our heroes journey to their next world for the next piece of heart. You can also look forward to the return of everyone's favorite character (no, not Lea) next time so stay tuned.**


	21. A New Form of Magic

Chapter 20

A New Form of Magic

 ** _Grimes Golden Park_**

 ** _Braeburn Town, Eden_**

The armor dematerialized around Kohle's body as he set foot on his home world for the first time in months. He stopped and frowned. Immediately he could tell that something was wrong. He peered over the railing at the pathway below. Following it would lead him back to Moira's Crescent's HQ.

Not having been there in four months, he had been looking forward to seeing the rest of his friends again after having spent some time by his lonesome in order to clear his head. He didn't think it would be easy, nor had he expected to return so soon to Eden. Despite his fading memories, those that had lived on were some of his most horrific. When he had fought in the Keyblade War he had seen the lives of those closest to him taken as well as having taken lives with his own hand.

War wasn't just something he could simply forget. Wherever he had been stationed, he had just a day or two of peace, maybe even a few if he were lucky, and then the fighting began. There had really only been a few battles he had participated in where his team had suffered defeat, and while the victories tended to be more frequent, the defeats usually were also some of the worst in the war. His last fight in particular he could never forget. It was so ingrained into his mind that he could recall them moment to moment when he closed his eyes. Though he had thought he had finally left them behind when he had found a family in Moira's Crescent, recent events had forced him to confront those memories once more.

He kept moving down the hill until he reached the asphalt and continued on his way. On his left and right were trees filled with his favorite apples, the Braeburn variety. Then again, he supposed it wouldn't be too hard for them to be his favorite when they were the only type of apple that grew in the town. If he had actually bothered to notify them that he was coming, then he imagined Salome and Alfonso would have prepared an amazing feast using these apples in celebration of his return. Ultimately, he decided against it, mainly because he wanted to keep it a surprise and see the reactions on their faces.

He turned into Grimes Golden Avenue and stopped again. There was a woman standing in front of his home. Kohle waited a few seconds but the woman was as motionless as a statue. She simply stayed there, rooted on the spot. Just staring.

Kohle walked towards her but his attention soon became fixed elsewhere—on what had once been his home. A huge portion had collapsed in on itself and was now a pile of debris. Windows were smashed and from what he could see from just being outside, the result of a fire had left most of the entrance and lounge scorched and battered beyond repair.

Suddenly feeling weak in the knees, Kohle dropped to the ground and shook his head. "No… w-why?"

"Horus, it would seem. I don't think they liked your friends disrupting their plans," the woman replied next to him. Her hair was as white as snow and a Kitsune mask hung from the side of her face. Her blue lipstick seemed to contrast greatly with her warm brown eyes. It was the mask that made him recognize this woman. She was a part of the Lunarian Elite Division. The best of the best. And her… judging by her lipstick, she was the one they called the 'Shiva of the Winds'. Her real name… Kohle couldn't quite remember, nor did he care to.

"So you've been doing well for yourself, I take it? How many years has it been, Kohle?" she asked.

"More than I care to remember," Kohle said. "Did Horus take them?"

"I couldn't say. I'm sorry about your friends and home," the woman said. "But we need you once more, Kohle."

Kohle laughed. With all the conflicting emotions stirring in his head, he didn't quite know how to feel at the moment so when he heard that, he couldn't help himself. He found the only measurable response at the moment was simply to laugh.

"Of course… a thousand years or so and you still don't get it."

"With all due respect, the situation as it was back then is not exactly the same as it is now. Things change but some remain the constant. If we refuse to do anything, Horus will take control of the light. That has always been the self-evident truth. I'm sorry we weren't there for you when you needed us most-"

"Me? I'm still here, aren't I? Now Moira? She's a different story. You don't get to regret anything. I will never forget what you did. If you even had the spine you do now, this war could have ended then and there. As far as I'm concerned, you Lunarians are just as bad as Horus," Kohle spat.

"You're right. It was our fault. Moira didn't deserve to die like that. That said, we can't keep looking back either. Like it or not, we exist in the here and now. Kingdom Hearts brought us back for a reason."

"Kingdom Hearts didn't bring you back," Kohle sneered but the woman shook her head, leaving him slightly mystified.

"We were locked outside the hourglass, with nothing but our dreams to hold us chained to this world. If Kingdom Hearts wanted to, it could have just erased us with but a thought. Why didn't it? Why else if not because it had greater plans in store for us?" the 'Shiva of the Winds' asked.

"You're suggesting that it was saving you for an opportunity like this?" Kohle asked with a slight look of amusement.

"I don't suggest. Do you ever stop to think that everything exists for the sake of another? That we live in a tangled web of relationships where what we do either acts as a benefit or a detriment to the other person and vice versa? Would you agree that relationships between people tend to be mutually beneficial in most cases? If so, what about a relationship between past and future? Is ours one of co-existence or is it parasitic? Can we work together, or will we end up devouring each other?" the woman asked.

"The way you make it out, it almost sounds like a test," Kohle said.

"I don't know about it. What I do know is that I shouldn't be standing here right now, but here I am. And so are you."

"I'm… a special case," Kohle said. "Anyway, the answer's no. I don't have time for you people. I don't know where I'm headed. I'm going to look for my friends, the people I can actually trust, and then I'm going after Horus. I'm no longer one of you. You get in my way, I won't hesitate to come after you either."

"Making the world your enemy is not a smart idea, Kohle," the woman said as he transformed back into his armor.

"Last I checked, you're not the world," he replied. With that he summoned his Keyblade and opened up a corridor of light, leaving the concerned stare of the woman behind as he left his old home for the final time.

* * *

Over the course of a week, Sora and Luna found their journey to find the rest of the pieces of heart stalled by a significant cramming session on relearning how to perform their magic. Shantotto's method of magic was reliant on two principles. The first was that the emotions and adrenaline that were used to cast magic needed to be separated from the magic itself. They hadn't even known that their emotions and other hormones were mixed into their magic let alone that they could separate them beforehand. It was also a big contributor towards mana depletion. It turned out that the potion Shantotto had given them had helped in giving them a larger window of sorts to untangle those emotions from the magic before casting.

The second principle relied on magic in context of its environment. It probably went without saying that using thunder around water was a disaster waiting to happen, but being able to draw from nature rather than relying on their own mana pool was also a way to increase efficiency. It didn't necessarily help with something like Fire unless they happened to be near a big source of it, but magic like Blizzard and Water could easily be drawn through what hydrogen was in the air. Even the potency of Thunder could change depending on the humidity in the air. While it wasn't exactly a reliable principle to go by depending on what was needed for the situation, it was certainly more than beneficial in the right situation. And this only extended to destructive magic. White magic was a whole other matter and Sora generally found it easier to adhere to the first principle when it came to it rather than the second.

Sora raised his right hand and focused, drawing his mana into it. He opened his palm wide and a _Fira_ projectile shot out of it, setting the log he had been practicing on alight. He had to quickly look away as the magnificent eruption of flames was too bright to look at. He soon looked back and laughed out loud. The log had been blasted backwards by the force of the explosion and a decent circumference of grass was now scorched and smoking.

Sora looked down at his palm and grinned. "Did I do that? Oh, I totally did!"

"Didn't your parents tell you not to play with fire?" Shantotto asked from behind. Sora jumped at her sudden voice and spun around to face her.

"Well you have to admit I'm doing pretty well," Sora said.

"And you're finally able to keep your feet grounded. By all means, both of your progress within a short week has left me astounded. Then again, I suppose that's to be expected of disciples of mine. Now I feel quite assured in saying that the rest of your journey will go just fine," Shantotto replied. Not wanting to spend too much time away from their mission, Sora and Luna had chosen to go through the 'short course' as Shantotto had labelled it. Because the short course involved hours of rigorous training and control of their magic that left them completely spent by day's end, they could hardly stand to think what the 'long course' would entail.

It was actually quite difficult to decide out of Shantotto and Neuge which one was the more stringent of the too. Neuge certainly didn't allow them to cut corners and asking her even once to 'go easy' would result in disasterific consequences. Shantotto, on the other hand, constantly made Sora feel as if he were stupid. She taught quickly and was never one to linger on subjects for long… unless he failed to take in everything, something that had happened to Sora more than once in which she would instead beat it into his head with a verbal hammer. The tiniest error, such as bending the arm slightly the wrong way, was also heavily scrutinized by the genius doctor.

Ultimately, though they were both strict, there was something admirable in their dedication to their craft. Though Neuge purported disinterest in using the Keyblade, there was always a twinkle in her eyes when she swung her Keyblade around as she taught him and Luna. He would never have the guts to actually tease her about it, but he imagined somewhere in that hardened shell was the young girl who dreamt of becoming a Keyblade Master. As for Shantotto, it was all too apparent how her love for magic and discovery tied into her personality, and while she was sometimes a little too pompous about her superior capabilities, Sora and Luna had grown to sort of like it in a strange totally-not-masochistic (so they had decided) way.

With his training finally complete, Sora followed Shantotto back through the forest to her small cottage which turned out to be not so small when factoring in magic. Waiting for them were Kupopo, Luna and the Gullwings, who had all been talking with each other before Paine had pointed out that Sora and Shantotto were coming their way.

"You guys ready to get going?" Sora asked.

"Readier than I've ever been. With all you've taught us, we'll stand a better chance against the Wraith and other Keyblade wielders. Thank you for everything, Shantotto," Luna said, walking over to hug her.

Shantotto winced as if Luna were about to hit her instead but soon recovered and looked about nervously instead. "Oh, it's um- I don't really do hugs but… I suppose I can make an exception. Just this once."

"She likes hugging people. Might want to get used to it, doc. I assume we'll be seeing you again," Sora said.

"Of course you will. And when you do you'll be converting to the long course, I presume?" Shantotto asked.

Sora and Luna eyed each other dubiously before looking back at Shantotto. Sora coughed and stretched his arms. "Oh, I just remembered. I think I left the… the shower running back in the Gummi Ship! Can't waste water. Well, it's been nice knowing you. Ciao!"

Sora suddenly took off, leaving Luna, Kupopo and the Gullwings baffled. Luna stood up and rushed after him. "Wait, Sora! Don't let me suffer alone!"

As Shantotto watched them run off at her suggestion, she smiled and folded her arms. "You've still got it. O-hohohohohoho!"

* * *

"We have everything packed?" Luna asked as she put the last of the sandwiches into the ice cooler. With nothing else to use as a picnic basket, they had to substitute which was just fine since they could pack everything they needed neatly inside the rectangle box.

"Even if we don't it's not like we can't easily come back to get it," Sora said, brandishing the key that would lead them to Yeul once again.

"Alright, ready when you are. See you in a bit, Kupopo!" Luna yelled out. The two of them walked into the Gummi Ship's hall and stopped at the first door on the left leading to Luna's bedroom. Sora slipped the key into the lock and turned it left to lock it and then back right to unlock it. In a normal situation, Sora would have just opened the door to see Luna's room. This was not a normal key.

Sora opened the door and walked into the Perpetual Divergence. He could have just twisted the key as he did the first time he came here by himself but after finding out about this method, he couldn't help but show off and impress Luna.

Luna stepped in and out of the door frame with her jaw still dropped. Finally, the right half of her body joined the other in the divergence and she whistled. "Okay, I'm satisfied. Let's move on."

Sora stifled a laugh and they continued down the path until they arrived in front of their old friend. Yeul smiled and started off in a half-run towards them.

"You came!" she greeted with a bright smile.

"Was there ever any doubt? Come on, you know I promised you that the next time we met it would be with Luna and that we'd have a picnic so here we are," Sora said. He looked around for a moment before settling on Yeul. "How long has it been since we last met?"

"A few days, it feels like. It's hard to say," Yeul said.

"Then a week outside is at least a few days here? That's honestly better than what I was expecting. Anyway, hope you're hungry- er… do you even get hungry?" Sora asked.

"Not exactly. It would impede in the way of my duties so I don't imagine Kingdom Hearts sees it as a necessary function I need," Yeul said. "That said, I can… pretend to be hungry. That might work."

"It better, because I seriously doubt Sora, Kupopo and I can handle this food all on our own," Luna said. Noticing that Sora's necklace was hanging around her neck, she smiled before looking up at the sky where the many stars that eluded the Realm of Light now hanged. It was his necklace that had somehow lighted the way for him to find her in the Realm of Darkness. It had given Luna much comfort in the Dark Realm and she hoped it could do the same for Yeul. "A picnic under the stars… it almost feels unreal. All you see on the other side now is pitch blackness at night. It's like there's this giant black curtain covering the world. Back when the stars were there, when you looked up at least you knew you weren't alone in the universe. Now it just feels lonely, even when we have each other."

Sora set the cooler down and opened up the box, taking out the sandwiches and handing one each to Luna and Yeul.

"It must feel nice to see them again. I've been surrounded by them since I awoke so I'm pretty used to them by now," Yeul said. "I suppose in my position, it's daylight that I don't get to see. I still remember that day in Twilight Town, on the clock tower," Yeul said.

"We were all there. You, me, Luna, Donald, Goofy, Riku, Kairi, Namine, Terra, Ven, Aqua, Xion, Lea, Roxas…" Sora paused upon mentioning his former Nobody's name. "I don't even know where any of them are at the moment. No matter how hard we try, something always keeps us apart. I don't know when or if I'll ever see them again."

"Well, you found me. Shouldn't that count for something?" Yeul asked.

"Exactly, Sora. Yeul's standing here right in front of us. Just try and comprehend that. If she's here, then it's only a matter of time until we meet the others. Only a matter of time until I see Astra again," Luna said. She pointed down at the cooler he was leaning over. "Also, I spent a good amount of time preparing those sandwiches so you better not ruin them with your tears. I may love Sea Salt Ice Cream but I'm not about to eat salty sandwiches."

"I wasn't about to cry! I was just… observing the situation," Sora quickly defended. He took a bite out of his sandwich and raised his brows. "Hmm, it's good. Oh, I almost forgot. Yeul, how much do you know about Kohle from Moira's Crescent?"

"Kohle?" Yeul asked in surprise.

Sora nodded. "Yeah. The thing is he's immortal, or at least it seems that way. Supposedly he's lived through the Keyblade War. I guess I can understand if he didn't tell you. Rhea seemed pretty surprised by it as well so I guess he never told the rest of Moira's Crescent. The problem is that we might have to fight him eventually. If we do, then I'm not sure how we're going to beat him."

Yeul was silent for a while. This would have been okay if it looked even the least bit like Yeul was pondering things over but that wasn't the case. Instead, her eyes reflected sadness. Did he say something to upset her? He tried to think back to his own words but he couldn't really think of anything that could be hurtful to Yeul's feelings.

"It's okay if you don't know, Yeul. We can figure things out on our own," Luna comforted but Yeul shook her head vehemently.

"No, it's just... I can't believe he's suffered for so long. I can't say I know a way. Immortality after all is meant to be unachievable—an impossibility. In a way, our hearts run on borrowed time and our bodies are the expiration date. Once that time is up, our hearts go back up there where they're renewed and given a clean slate. That would make Kohle's heart probably the oldest in existence. I suppose if you could find something just as impossible you could somehow drain his immortality," Yeul said.

"The only problem… that impossible thing," Sora said.

"I know it's not much help but it's all I've got. Though I say impossible, maybe that's not necessarily the right word. Improbable, more so. The Keyblade is an improbability. There should only be one in existence and yet as you know now, there are many. Me being in front of you is an improbability and yet I'm here. If those things can happen, then why not an improbable solution for immortality?" Yeul asked.

"I mean, that's great and all but I feel like at that point we're just asking for miracles. Like, right now I'd take a magic potion or a magical lance that could… wait a second…" Sora looked down on his sandwich and began weighing it in his hand.

Luna gave him an inquisitive look. "The sandwich? Sora, I don't think a sandwich is going to beat-"

"Not the sandwich! I know this sounds crazy but there just might be something that can help us. Our improbable weapon," Sora said. He told them both about the Seven-Branched Sword that could supposedly destroy anything it came in contact with simply from touching the object seven times. He also explained how David Xanatos had landed six hits on his Keyblade with it back in Atlantis before deliberately holding back on the seventh.

Luna, who had already known about the sword beforehand, frowned. "So we need to go after Xanatos then. Not like we weren't already going to do that but Sora, if he's already landed six hits-"

"Yeah. I know. Just one more and it's over, well, assuming it affects the Keyblade and assuming the hits don't wear off over time. But we need that sword," Sora said. He looked at Yeul for a moment and smiled before peering into the cooler once more. "But for now, less thinking, more binging. Speaking of which, you said you've never had a hot dog before, right? Time for your first bite!"

So this is how easy it was to talk to someone they had known to previously have been stabbed and killed right in front of them. It was almost like she had never been kidnapped in Twilight Town either. They had simply picked up right as they left off. It was a natural progression of where their friendship was headed. A more confident and approachable Yeul who loved to listen to their tales of the outside world involving comic books and manga on Sora's part and novels on Luna's.

"But that must be a lot of munny wasted to stay so committed to one series, don't you think?" Yeul asked, particularly in relation to Sora who had boasted owning multiple comics of the same series.

"Sure it is. I mean, I did my fair share of part time jobs back on the island to save up and I could have spent it on anything really, but I think it's worth it. Money is meant to be wasted really. It only means as much value as the person who has it is willing to give it. That and, what with being on an island for fourteen years of your life, there's not exactly much to do. Think of it like this—comics are like worlds! Each one you pick up is an invitation into that world where you get to see those characters' way of life, their dilemmas and how they solve them. They're this microcosm of the things I've seen on my journey so far. Good and evil, justice and injustice, law and chaos, you'd be surprised how many concepts they play with," Sora explained.

"I don't know. I've checked out some of them and I think they play it too close to the chest sometimes. Not enough ambivalence and they're morally static making them one dimensional characters," Luna said. "Books on the other hand, aren't afraid to experiment. You get more insight on a character's thoughts from them."

"You're totally generalizing! It's not like books can't have one-sided characters either, just as how comic books can have three-dimensional characters. Heck, in the _Deadly Ronin_ comics, during the Aspersion saga, Detective Luger goes through one of the most traumatizing character arcs in probably any piece of fiction. He's tried and tested to the extreme as his whole world falls apart around him."

"Uh huh, I'm sure. And how long into these comics is this saga?" Luna asked.

"I'm not sure I understand your point," Sora said.

"Or you don't want to understand. My point is you probably had to spend a lot to even get to that point. Books, unless they're an epic spanning seven books or something, usually have beginnings, middle and endings. Sometimes there are cliffhangers but usually the book alone leaves you satisfied by itself and doesn't cheap you out of your munny for what might not even be a satisfying conclusion," Luna ranted.

"Luna… I'm sorry your parents didn't let you have comic books but I'm afraid you're incredibly wrong about this," Sora said.

Luna moved her hands as if wiping invisible tears from her eyes. "Too soon, Sora. Too soon!"

Yeul chuckled. "I don't think weeping will get him to concede, Luna."

Luna dropped her hands and went back to her glowing beam. "Oh well. At least I tried. Wow, I can't believe we've pretty much finished everything in the box. Yeul, you glutton!"

"Hehe, sorry," Yeul apologized with a rueful smile.

"No, it's okay. This was all for your royal hungry mungry-ness anyway-"

" _Kupooooooo!_ "

They looked back at the pathway leading to the Gummi Ship to see Kupopo flying towards them.

Luna was the first to stand up and asked, "What's wrong?"

"W-we're being attacked, kupo!" Kupopo announced, flailing his arms about wildly.

Sora sprung up. "Crap! Yeul, I'm sorry but-"

"No, go quickly. I'm glad I got to see the both of you again," Yeul said. Sora smiled at her before grabbing the cooler than hurrying along with Luna and Kupopo back to the door.

"See? I told you that you couldn't leave me alone all by myself, kupo! Now look what's happened," Kupopo yelled as they ran towards the door.

"What are you talking about? If we'd taken you along with us, we might not have even had a Gummi Ship to return to. Heck, we might not anyway after this," Sora said. Luna reached the door first (left already opened by Kupopo) and ran into the Gummi Ship's hallway and towards the cockpit, jumping right into the pilot seat.

"Sora, you shoot. I drive," she said quickly.

"Yes, ma'am," Sora replied. He quickly opened up the trapdoor on the left of the room and jumped down into the firing room. The Gummi Ship suddenly jolted to the left with Sora's shoulder hitting the wall. When he looked out of the window he could the several large tentacles rising out from the ocean and writhing about like snakes. "What the hell is that?"

"I think it's the Kraken. Astra told me about it. Time to pay you back for Astra," he heard Luna's voice over the radio.

"The Kraken? What, you mean Davy Jones' pet?" Sora asked. "What's it even doing here?"

"Less thinking, more shooting!" Luna snapped.

"Probably the first time I've ever been told that," Sora said. He took hold of the controls and started firing Thunder shots at the tentacles. Some managed to connect with the giant tentacles, knocking them away while others hit the water creating a lot of large splashes. Meanwhile, Luna did her best to weave in between the tentacles but wasn't nearly as successful as she hoped. A tentacle moved in front the side and rammed into the Gummi Ship, knocking it into away. The whiplash threw Sora forward but seatbelt caught him and prevented him from flying out of the seat.

"Oops…" he heard Luna squeak through the radio.

"Alright, Luna! You're not me so please don't kill us?" Sora asked sweetly.

"I'll try not to," croaked Luna. Sora aimed the turret and was about to fire more shots at the tentacles when he caught sight of the monster's mouth in the water. "Sora, why aren't you-"

"Listen, I have an idea. You need to get in close. I think if we can shoot into his mouth we might stand a chance," Sora said.

Luna sighed. "Uh huh. Let's be honest, you really just want to shoot into its mouth, right?"

Sora grinned. "How did you know? I think we have that twin sibling connection thing going on."

"So since we're going out, does that make it twincest?" Luna asked.

"I… am not going to answer that," Sora said. Two tentacles came in from his left and right, to which he activated the Gravity-G button, blasting a sphere out of the cannon that quickly expanded and repelled the tentacles. His sight of them soon disappeared as the Gummi Ship rose up in altitude. Luna was probably trying to find the smoothest and safest way to the center of the Kraken.

Unfortunately, the Kraken happened to be faster. Something hard slammed into the Gummi Ship from the back, sending it spiralling off course. Luna quickly managed to level out the ship again but there was something considerably wrong. The airship didn't seem to be balancing correctly.

"I… uh, think we lost a wing," Luna said.

"You think?" Sora replied sarcastically. "Um, activate the thrusters."

"Sorry, what was that again?" Luna asked in a tiny voice.

Sora facepalmed. "We're dead."

He looked through his fingers as the Gummi Ship started creaking. Before he could check to see what was going on, the Gummi Ship was lurched backwards at quick speed. The last thing Sora saw before he lost consciousness was a blue sky they could no longer reach.

* * *

 ** _Location Unknown_**

A single breath escaped Luna's mouth as she jumped up and looked around frantically. Her eyes eventually settled on a crab in front of her. The crab stared at Luna and she stared back. It was a weird crab, not like any she had ever seen before. It was completely made out of rock. Suddenly it scuttled away from her and she stifled a laugh.

"Hello to you too," she murmured. She stood up and looked around but the person she expected to be with her wasn't there. "Sora? Sora? Kupopo?"

With only dead air as a reply, Luna decided she had no choice but to start walking. In which direction? Any. It wasn't like it mattered. The entire area was nothing but a white desert. She could very easily be walking in the opposite direction of where Sora and Kupopo were but if she stood around, there was no guarantee that Sora and Kupopo would ever find her either.

She had been alone before anyway. Having once been in the Realm of Darkness she had only her beliefs and inner strength to rely on, both of which at times felt so slippery that Luna had to grasp onto them for dear life in order to keep her sanity. If she could handle the realm of darkness then a desert was nothing.

But she had to admit, as she kept walking through the desert, even the realm of darkness had more variety in locale than this place. At least in the dark realm the occasional broken world would appear that could sometimes offer more solace than the roads in between them. This was just… bland. She was traversing a desert which could have easily spanned hundreds if not thousands of miles for all she knew.

Why was she even here in the first place? Now that she thought about it, the memories of prior events to her waking up ran through her mind. The Gummi Ship had been dragged straight into the Kraken's mouth. Knowing that, she should be dead. Not that she was complaining but she was sure there was a pretty big question mark somewhere in all that mess.

Luna stopped once again when another crab ran and stopped in front of her… or was it the same crab? She wasn't quite sure. Once again, they stared at each other and just like before, the crab soon wandered off. This time, Luna's stare lingered on the crab as it scuttled off.

"You want me to follow you? Alright, lead the way, Mr. Crab. And now I'm talking to a crab. Tis a dark day indeed," Luna said as she followed after the rock crab.

Meanwhile, Sora woke up to find himself in a similar situation. He looked around in hopes of finding Luna and Kupopo but when it became clear that he was the only person in the area, he sighed.

"Where am I even? We fell right into the Kraken's mouth, didn't we? So then… why am I here?" Sora asked.

"I suppose you could say… this is your rightful place."

At the sound of the voice, Sora turned around to see an exact copy of himself staring back at him.

"And who are you supposed to be?" Sora asked with an amused smile.

"Who do you think, genius? I'm you," replied the fake.

"Why thank you, me. I've never been called a genius before," Sora said. His face grew darker. "Not that it means much from you. And what did you mean by my rightful place?"

"This is a prison. A land forgotten by time. It's here you will stay and wonder this barren wasteland for eternity. Fitting for someone like you who, albeit unwillingly, has brought the sentence of death to so many. How many innocents do you think have died so far? My guess… so many of whose names you don't even know. But it's fine, right? Out of sight, out of mind. You just keep travelling and living in your tiny bubble. If you don't know them, it's like they don't exist."

"Shut up! Now I know you're definitely nothing but a fake. I would never think of anyone like the way you just described it. If you were me you would know I don't carry this burden lightly. There's not a day that goes by where I don't think about how worse off people are because of what I've done, but you know what? I did my self-pitying. I had three months to do that. Now, I'm going to actually get up and do something about it and no prison is going to keep me from doing that," Sora said. He summoned his Keyblade and pointed it at the fake. "By the way, you're not stopping me either, fake."

Fake Sora sneered at him, his fists curling into balls. "A fake, am I? I have the same powers as you. I'd make a much better you than you could ever be."

"Another mistake you've made. I'm not the type to boast. Anyway, it's starting to freak me out seeing a reflection of myself talking back to me so let's hurry this up," Sora said. The fake summoned his Keyblade, an exact replica of the Kingdom Key, and cast Firaga magic with his left hand. The magic split into four separate attacks, but Sora dispersed them quickly with a widespread burst of Thundaga.

With the magic out of the way, they quickly ran at each other. Fake Sora swung horizontally but Sora backed out of the Keyblade's range and struck vertically only for his attack to be guarded and parried by the fake.

"Freeze!" Fake Sora yelled, sending several icicle projectiles Sora's way. Sora quickly batted them away before moving in with a Sonic Blade. Fake Sora quickly cast Aeroga summoning a gust of wind that blew Sora out of his thrusting attack. The fake jumped into the air and fired off Ragnorok. A fusillade of energy shots spiralled out of his Keyblade at Sora who quickly cast Reflect to defend against them. Fake Sora quickly warped in and delivered a powerful swing to the shield, breaking it and sending Sora to the ground.

"You understand now? I know all of your little tricks. There's nothing you can throw at me that I won't see coming," the fake said. Sora quickly extended his hand and flicked his wrist in quick succession, casting Firaga first followed by Thundaga. Fake Sora skilfully evaded the large explosion followed by the electrical boom, but Sora took this time to activate Ars Arcanum and warped in, initiating a flurry of attacks that overwhelmed the fake Sora. Though he tried to guard, the imitation was quickly disarmed after a few strikes. Sora followed up with another swing, the back of his Keyblade connecting with the Fake Sora's chin consequently launching him into the air.

The fake fell back to the ground and looked up at Sora with disgust. He reached out for his Keyblade and after a few misses finally managed to grab it. Sora expected him to retaliate but instead he watched as his fake got back up and took off in the opposite direction.

"Hey, come back here! I'm not done with you yet!" Sora yelled, chasing after him.

* * *

Following a crab had not been entirely easy nor had Luna expected it to be. The crab moved much slower than an average human so Luna found herself constantly stopping and having to wait for the crab to go ahead. Eventually, however she got bored of doing so and started crawling on the ground, half out of quirkiness and half because it kept her at the crab's pace.

" _It's a small world after all. It's a small world after all. It's a small world_ -"

"Luna, what are you doing, kupo?"

Luna froze and looked up to see Kupopo. She quickly jumped up and looked about wholly unperturbed. "Nothing. Nothing at all. I was… trying to study the rocks. I'm a rock hound, I like collecting rocks."

"Uh huh. Whatever you say, kupo," Kupopo said. "But I'm so glad I've found you. I was so lonely by myself."

"Same here. Glad to see you're alright. Now we just need to find Sora," Luna said, looking back to the crab. It was probably strange to think so, but she felt as if she owed reuniting with Kupopo to this crab. Maybe it could sense other lifeforms present in the area. That, or her meeting with the moogle had been incredibly coincidental, something which was hard to believe in such a large wasteland.

With the thought in mind that the crab must be lucky, Luna continued to follow it, all the while explaining to Kupopo why she had actually been on the ground. It wasn't too long before they saw something in the distance. Luna soon recognized it as their Gummi Ship, though by its aesthetic appearance alone, she highly doubted it was capable of use anymore.

Luna set off into a run, Kupopo fast behind her. Arriving at the wreckage, her heart sank. Even after thinking the most obvious conclusion from its appearance alone, she still had hope that they could use it to get out of wherever it was they were. There was a tear that seemed to travel all the way across the Gummi Ship's side, and a good amount of paint peeled off leaving the original red, green and purple colors that the blocks had originally come in before being resprayed.

Luna walked over to the other side and pulled opened the door. The first thing she noticed as she stepped in was that the roof was slightly bent inwards, probably from the Kraken's clutch. The only thing that had been keeping it from caving in completely was probably the elasticity of the Gummi Blocks.

"Think it can be used again, Kupo?" Kupopo asked from behind her.

Luna shook her head. "It doesn't look good. Unless we somehow miraculously find Gummi Blocks around here, she's flown her last flight."

"Then how are we even supposed to get out of here?" Kupopo squirmed, clutching his head in a panic.

"I'm sure there's another way. Somewhere…" Luna murmured. Kupopo nodded solemnly and turned around to leave only to spot something strange.

"Luna!"

"Huh?" Luna turned around and her eyes widened at the strange phenomenon in front of her. "Another… me?"

"Surprised to see me? Or have I left you speechless?" the copy asked.

"I… I don't know what kind of sick joke you think this is but it's not funny. Kupopo, you can see her too, right?" Luna asked.

"Yes, Luna, er… you are Luna, right, kupo?" Kupopo asked.

"Of course I am. You've been with me this whole time, haven't you?" Luna asked.

"Don't listen to her, Kupopo. She's been lying to you this whole time. I'm the real Luna!" the other girl pleaded.

Luna rolled her eyes. "Please don't confuse him. I don't know who you think you are but tell me something. Where are we?"

"A place most befitting to you. A barren wasteland where you are neither dead nor truly alive. You'll wander here for all eternity, wandering what could have been. Oh, how many stars you could have seen, dream girl. Don't worry, I'll be sure to see them in your place. Aren't I nice? And since I am, I suppose it's only fair while I'm here that I try and help you see your parents once more," the fake Luna said, summoning her Keyblade. "And though I might not be able to kill you, they do say that you see your life flashes before your eyes just before your die. So you'll get to see your parents over and over again every time I bring you closer to the brink of death. An almost death, that's good enough. Don't worry, mom and dad, I'll take good care of your daughter. Forever and ever if I have to."

"You're insane! Kupopo, get behind me," Luna said. She waited for the moogle to do so before summoning her own Keyblade.

The fake moved first and jumped, cloaking her Keyblade in lightning and diving down at Luna. Luna let her hand slip to her keychain and she executed Chain Rave, holding the spinning Keyblade above her. The attacks collided causing a significant amount of sparks to be released. Luna quickly slide dashed away, the fake landing where she had once been. They both quickly turned and simultaneously shot off three spheres of electricity at each other. The shots met mid-air and so did their casters once again as they engaged in close combat.

"You really don't have to fight so hard, you know? There's certainly no point in it anymore since you're stuck here," Fake Luna said. She jumped and executed Blizzard Edge, cloaking her Keyblade in an icy sword and swinging at Luna who ducked and cast Fission Firaga. The spell made contact with the falling girl and blew her away. Fake Luna hit the ground a few feet away and kept rolling for a while before she finally lay still.

"You wanted to know why I won't give in. It's because of people like you. The kind of people who feel the need to put others down when they could be helping others instead," Luna said.

"So that's it. You think you can play the card of the self-righteous. You killed your own parents! You think any other person in your position would have gotten off scot-free? All this travelling, this adventure, this love… you were rewarded for killing your parents," Fake Luna said.

"That's not true. I'm sad to hear you think that. Maybe you are me. Maybe deep down, there's still a part of me that wants to be punished and that's why you've come out. Still, I have suffered. I lost my memory of who I was for a while. I could even remember my parents or Astra. Then, just as I got it back, I had to spend three months in the Realm of Darkness. And then even after that… well, you get the picture," Luna said with a small smile.

"Why… why don't you hate me? I hate me, so you must hate me too," Fake Luna cried out.

"Then you want me to end it then? For you?" Luna asked, aiming her Keyblade at the other Luna.

"Luna!"

Luna spun around as Sora ran towards her. It wasn't long before he felt his arms wrap around her.

"Sora?"

"Luna, I'm so glad you're okay. Looks like there was another one of you too, huh?" Sora asked, looking past Luna's shoulder to see the fake Luna.

"I… you're not Sora," Luna whispered.

"What do you mean?" Sora asked. Rather than answering, Luna pulled herself away from him. "Luna?"

She looked up into his eyes. "I said you're not Sora. You can drop the act."

"Luna, it really is-"

"You? No. Something feels off. Maybe my heart is warning me. That and the crown necklace you're wearing. You shouldn't have it on," Luna said. As Sora stared down at his necklace, Luna smirked and added, "Oh, and one more thing. The real Sora is right behind you."

The fake Sora spun around to see the real one, who smiled at him before delivering a punch to his jaw, sending the fake to the floor.

"Man, it's not every day you get to punch yourself, but when you do it feels _so_ good," Sora said.

Fake Sora spat out some saliva that had formed in his mouth and stood back up. "Like you have anything to act so damn brave about. I know what you fear. The clock just keeps ticking and even if by some quirk of fate you manage to escape this prison, the clock on your death will resume once more. If anything, staying here means the prophecy won't come to pass."

"Prophecy?" Luna asked. She looked towards Sora. "What's he talking about, Sora?"

Sora managed to swallow down the lump in his throat and answered, "Nothing."

"Don't lie. Don't you think she deserves to know the truth?" When Sora remained silent however, Fake Sora sighed. "Play the ignorant fool then. It's about time for the gloves to come off anyway."

"What do you mean?" Sora asked with increasing exasperation.

"Heh. Heh-heh-heh. We'll see how well you deal with your own power," said Fake Sora before being engulfed in a bright light. When the light vanished, Sora stood face to face with his Final Form drive, equipped with a floating Oblivion and Oathkeeper behind him.

"You've got to be kidding me," Sora muttered.

"Uh, Sora, what is this?" Luna asked.

"What is this? Well… I'll just give you some advice. Don't try to get close to him," Sora said.

The Final Form Sora looked behind him at the fake Luna and said, "Are you willing to let this phoney get away with humiliating you?"

Fake Luna shook her head and stood up. "No. If we work together we can mop the floor with them."

Before Sora could reply, someone else ran in front of them, shielding them both from the Final Form Sora and Fake Luna.

"Looks like I arrived just in time to level the playing field. Are you two alright?" the blue-haired girl asked. Sora and Luna couldn't have believed it even if they tried. They both shouted her name in surprise.

"Aqua?!"

* * *

 **A/N: Hope you enjoyed what has actually been the first chapter in this story where we've seen from Luna's perspective. Also, although the introduction was a tease, I hope you're looking forward to more of said fan favorite character. For those who can't wait though, feel free to check out Through Smoke and Flames where a new chapter will be releasing within the next week. Also, for those that wonder about the letter and flashback in the last chapter, there is a little clue to who the person is in the first person perspective, but then that will lead to another question once you find the answer. Anyway, hope to see you again soon.**


	22. A Matter of Perspective

**A/N: For a quick reference, this chapter all takes place after the incident at Singapore. Alongside that, I've actually twisted the canon a bit so that Sao Feng dies during the East India Company's assault. Here, Barbossa was just a little bit faster with announcing his intention to release Calypso and Elizabeth already has his piece of eight. Also, something else about the person in the first person perspective, I never said it was a boy. Not confirming it's a girl or anything but yeah...**

* * *

Chapter 21

A Matter of Perspective

"Aqua, what are you doing here?" Sora asked the mage. She smiled at him before looking back to the Final Form and Fake Luna.

"Kupopo found us just in the nick of time and told us about you," Aqua explained. She was wearing a blue chiffon blouse over a black top along with black jeans. Apart from clothes, she had really not changed all that much. If they weren't busy fighting themselves, Sora would have broken down then and there. Just seeing one of his friends again was enough of a comfort for him.

"Us? So then-"

"No, not them. I've been travelling with a band of pirates. I got here on their ship. They even seem to know you two," Aqua explained. She raised an eyebrow at the fakes and said, "Say, you two didn't happen to step into a cloning machine by any chance?"

"I'm afraid not. No alternating current involved in this parlor trick, I'm afraid," Luna said.

"You guys can take a breather. I can handle them," Aqua said. Sora and Luna exchanged quick looks with each other before going on either side of Aqua, readying their weapons. "No rest needed then."

Sora grinned. "Just what you'd expect from the Keyblade Master and his apprentice."

"Strange. I thought you renounced that title," Aqua said.

"Oh. Yeah," Sora remembered. He had really only wanted to act cool for the short while but he guessed it had backfired.

"Three on two? That's cheating!" the Final Form Sora snapped.

"Well look at it this way. If you beat all three of us, that just proves you were the genuine article all along," Aqua said.

Final Form Sora sneered. "Heh, are you that confident that you think you can beat us?"

"I don't think. I know. _Penta-Firaga_!" Aqua aimed her Stormfall Keyblade quickly at the Final Form as if she were drawing a pistol. Five shots of Firaga burst out of her Keyblade and flew past the Final Form Sora and Fake Luna like missiles.

The fake Luna was first to recover, catching her breath. She then gave a smug smile and said, "Looks like you missed."

Aqua smiled at her. "Did I?"

The fakes looked questioningly at her before turning around to see the Firaga heading back towards them just as fast as they left. Just before they hit, Aqua swivelled on her heel and cast Barrier around the three of them. Sora could only briefly make out his Final Form self attempting to cast Reflect when the blast happened. The trio were forced to look downward as the bright fire lashed out and the heat tickled their faces.

Eventually the uncontrollable flames soon deflated and became something small and spherical before diminishing completely. Aqua's outstretched hands dropped from Sora and Luna's shoulders and she turned around to see a barely functioning Reflect shield put up by the fake Sora and Luna.

As the shield broke down, they were both left gasping for breath. Aqua took a step forward again and readied her Keyblade.

"You… you almost had us," Fake Sora said. "But I'm done playing the nice guy."

"Your funeral," Aqua said. Final Form Sora flew forward, alternating between throwing Oblivion and Oathkeeper one at a time. Aqua blocked each Keyblade with her own and cast Mine Square before jumping away. As the Fake Sora flew into the trap, the explosives ignited and blew him into the air.

"Triple Blizzaga!" Aqua cast, summoning snowflakes in the air that expanded into giant crystals. The Final Form quickly grabbed the two Keyblades from his back and crossed them in front of him, guarding as the crystal bloated and blew up in an attempt to hit him. Luna jumped in front of Aqua and charged her Keyblade while the Fake Sora's back was turned to the ground. The Fake Luna aimed her Keyblade at the real one to stop her but Sora quickly sprinted forward, leapt and delivered a blow from above, forcing her to block. With her Keyblade fully charged, Luna unleashed a wave of light travelling upwards.

The fake Sora looked behind him to see this just in time to flip in the air to dodge. The wave travelled past him and shattered the ice crystals into pieces.

Final Form Sora looked back at the crystal shards and laughed before casting Graviga on them. The sharp crystals began dropping fast like hail and Luna and Aqua were forced to go on the defensive, using their Keyblades as Windmills to smash the shards. While they were distracted, Final Form Sora flew down towards the real Sora and fake Luna who were duelling with one another.

"I'm coming for you, real thing!" he yelled as he closed in. Sora gritted his teeth and swung with all his might, pushing the fake Luna back a bit before guarding the fake Sora's Oblivion and Oathkeeper Keyblades. Sora quickly summoned a second Keyblade—Oathkeeper—into his hands and quickly moved about as the fake Luna and Sora attacked him from both sides. He soon became aware of his own breathing and the sound of each clang followed the weight of his opponents' blades dropping on and lifting off his own.

It was like all of Neuge's teachings were coming back to him, rushing through his head and translating into even the tiniest of muscles in his body. She had told him he wouldn't truly know what their training meant until he was in a fight where he had to use. Now in between a rock and a hard place, he was finding out how right she was. He wasn't sure what he was doing or how he was doing it. He was relying on pure instinct and adrenaline.

"How are you…?" Final Sora yelled before grunting and warping a few inches away. Sora blocked another attack by the fake Luna and quickly snaked his other arm underneath and around hers, locking her in place. As Final Form rushed charged forward in a Sonic Blade attack, Sora spun Fake Luna into the attack. Sora looked away for what happened next. Even if she were fake, she still looked like Luna, and she was still going to die by someone who looked like him. Knowing that scared him. She was fake, but she felt just as real.

Eventually, Sora looked back to see her body fading into a pool of darkness. The fake Sora looked up from where his partner had fallen with anger in his eyes. Was it genuine anger, Sora wondered? As the fake Sora charged towards him now, was it real anger driving his actions?

He fell forwards before he could reach Sora. Aqua had drawn one of the final shards towards her with Magnet Spiral before launching it with a well-aimed spin attack at the fake Sora. As he fell, he reached out for Sora only to smash into tiny globules of dark liquid.

"Sora, are you okay? You were… amazing!" Luna jumped up and down excitedly. "You fended off their attacks like they were nothing."

"Yeah… not really sure what came over me," Sora said.

"Well, in cases of danger, they say the stress that comes from it allows dormant abilities to kick in. I bet your heart's pumping fast now," Aqua replied with a laugh. "Just don't allow it to overwhelm you entirely. Adrenaline's great and all until you start to think you're invincible. And no one is invincible."

"Well, I won't rely on it but I certainly won't refuse its help either. Anyway, it's so good to see you again Aqua. You don't know how long we've gone without having seen you or the rest of the gang. Riku was the last person we met."

"Riku? You've found him then?" Aqua asked.

"We did but he wasn't doing too well, last time I checked. He's chasing after some guy called Janus. He's the one who held him captive," Sora said.

"Janus? Kairi and I encountered him and his men back in Prydain," Aqua said.

"KAIRI?!" Sora yelled causing Luna and Aqua to jump in a start. Sora grinned and let his head hang back. "She alright?"

"Yes, but let's start heading to others and we can talk along the way," Aqua said. Her eyes darted over to where the Gummi Ship lay and Sora followed her gaze.

"Is there any way to get it working, Aqua?" Luna asked in a hopeful tone.

"Unfortunately, no. Not from where we are anyway," Aqua said as she started to walk. Sora and Luna quickly hurried their pace to stay alongside her.

"And where would that be exactly?" Sora asked.

"This place is called Davy Jones' Locker. It's also known as the land of the dead by many who travel the seas but it's not really. You're not dead. You're just trapped in another dimension, one where the rules of death don't apply. How did you get here, by the way?" Aqua asked.

"I think we were swallowed by the Kraken. If this is Davy Jones' Locker, I guess that explains things," Sora said.

"But why would Davy Jones suddenly set the Kraken on us?" Luna asked.

"Well, he is a part of KRONOS," Sora answered.

"That's not exactly the reason. On the way here we met this duo of pirates, or Sky Pirates is what they call themselves—Balthier and Fran. They claimed to know you," Aqua said.

"They do. They're here?" Sora asked.

Aqua nodded. "But along the way, we were encountered by Davy Jones' ship. He seemed to have a bone to pick with those two. Something about not fulfilling their promise. Balthier said he didn't know what they were talking about and he sent the Kraken after us. I told the captain of the ship to take us to land since at sea, there was little we could do against it. We soon reached a small island and from there, I took the creature down."

"All by yourself?" Sora asked astounded.

"It was much harder than I make it sound. We figured out that Kraken wasn't necessarily going after the ship, but after Balthier and Fran. They had to stay on land with me while the others stayed in the ship. It was pretty hard keeping them both safe while fighting. Oh, and then some of Davy Jones' crew coming off of the Flying Dutchman didn't help either," Aqua said.

"Aqua, you are a beast. And I mean that in every good sense of the word," Sora said.

"Wait a moment… you said it was something over not fulfilling a promise?" Luna checked.

"Balthier didn't go into if that's what you're asking. I told him that he was lucky I was there when I was since he wouldn't be around had I not decided to stick around. I never managed to get anything out of him though. He always just started… flirting with me?"

"The good old deflection tactic… you didn't actually let him flirt with you, did you?" Sora asked.

"Huh? No! No, no, no, no, no! Absolutely not!" Aqua refuted with a slight blush.

"It's okay. Didn't mean to bring the memories back to the surface. Sorry about that," Sora said. "So what was that about Kai-"

"We're here." Aqua pointed to the shoreline where a ship was moored to the beach. Next to the shore they could see a group of figures though they were too small to make out from where they were standing. Aqua turned to Sora and said, "I'll tell you about Kairi once we get back on the ship."

As they followed after Aqua, they still had one more question on their minds. If they were in another dimension, how did Aqua and the others end up there as well? They would find that their question would be answered almost immediately upon meeting the group of pirates by the shore. The first person he came across, Sora remembered meeting roughly more than a year back. Seeing the familiar face brought back memories of sailing across the seas in search of his beloved.

"Sora! Luna! It's good to see the both of you again, especially you, Luna. We weren't sure where you disappeared to at Isla Cruces," Will Turner said.

"In a way, it was probably for the best. Sorry to make you all worry though. Elizabeth, how are you doing?" Luna asked. Elizabeth took her eyes off of Will who seemed almost like he was ignoring her and smiled at Luna.

"Well, considering where we are right now, I suppose things are better than the alternative. We actually fell down a waterfall to get here if you can believe it. I guess when Tia Dalma said we could find Jack at world's end, she meant it literally, but we didn't think we'd also find you two," she said.

"Jack? What happened with Jack?" Sora asked. He titled sideways to see Jack hiding behind the tall Viera they knew as Fran. As the woman sighed and stepped aside, they could see that he was sucking his thumb.

"Hey, Jack. Haven't seen you in a while." Sora waved at the pirate. Jack looked up at Sora and sprang up immediately. He walked towards Sora and pointed at him.

"Z-Zo-"

"Sora!" Sora yelled.

"That's it! And Luna! You've grown into a fine young woman," Jack said.

"I'm still the same age as when you last met me, captain," Luna said.

Jack's eyes narrowed for a moment. "Pity."

Luna face crinkled into a frown as Jack walked past her. He finally set his eyes on another man Sora didn't recognize.

"Mr. Gibbs, are we ready to set sail?" Jack asked.

"Ah, well, you see, Jack," Gibbs began only to be interrupted by another's presence.

"And what ship would that be, Jack?" the man asked with a slight snarl. Sora's eyes widened when he realized who it was.

"Barbossa? Why? How?"

"Only a small list of questions in the very big conundrum known as life, I'm afraid. Long story short, I was brought back to the world of the living to help bring back Jack Sparrow who was taken just like you were by the mighty beast of the sea," Barbossa said.

"When Jones finds out they're back in the land of the living, he'll want them dragged straight back to the bottom of the sea. Of course, with his little pet gone, that will at least be easier said than done," Gibbs said.

Barbossa looked Astra's way and grinned. "What a scary lass-"

"Stop that!" Aqua snapped. The way she had spoken coupled with Barbossa's laugh gave the impression that this had not been the first time he had teased her.

"Barbossa, enough with the harassment. I don't know about you but I'd rather not be stuck here for the rest of my life. Let us be off to the Pearl," Balthier said, who Sora had just noticed had been walking around behind. He set a hand on Sora's shoulder and gave it a squeeze.

"Couldn't agree more. Now back onto my ship," Barbossa said.

"Onto your ship?" Jack asked. Barbossa turned back to him and smiled.

"That is what I said. _My_ ship," he answered, taking a bite out the apple in his hand. Perched on his shoulder was Jack the Monkey who, last Luna had recalled, had been sacrificed to Tia Dalma by human Jack in order to get information on the Dead Man's Chest.

"I'm the captain of the Black Pearl," Jack argued.

"And I have the chart," Barbossa replied, holding up the map in his other hand. Jack tried to snatch it from him but Barbossa was quick and held it back. He smiled and turned again, starting to the ship. "Of course, it's your choice, Jack. Ready to commit yourself to a life of solitude? It's only for an eternity after all."

"Yeah, come on, Jack. While you're here, no one can ever know about the daring endeavours of Captain Jack Sparrow and how he single-handedly escaped from the depths of Davy Jones' Locker," Sora said.

Jack pointed at Sora. "This man. He gets it!"

As they walked on board, Sora looked around to see the rest of the motley crew walking around the ship. A woman soon appeared in front of him with dark markings underneath her eyes and mouth.

"You are Sora?" she asked, speaking with a West Indian accent. Looking down, he saw that she was completely barefoot.

"I am. How do you know my name though? Do I know you?" Sora asked.

"No but I know you," Tia leaned in and stared deep into his eyes. It was uncomfortable, like she were staring into his soul. Without warning, she looked past him to Luna, forcing him to step out of the way. "And how is young Luna doing?"

"Miserably optimistic," Luna said with a beam.

"That's what me like to hear. The second part at least," Tia said.

"Stop blocking the way!" Barbossa snapped at them as he stepped onto the ship. Tia turned around and headed towards Jack. Sora instead turned his attention to Aqua, who was the last person to come aboard.

"So, how are we going to get out here?" Aqua asked.

"Not sure, but I do know that Tia Dalma wouldn't have sent us here if there were not a way back," Barbossa said, he looked over. He held up the chart again. "This map be the key."

Will made sure Tia Dalma was in far reaching distance of their conversation before speaking. "You have a lot of confidence in Tia Dalma, Barbossa. I've been thinking about this for a while but I get the feeling you know something we don't. Care to share?"

"I have given ye all that I know. Would I ever lie to you, Mr. Turner?" Barbossa asked.

"You're a pirate. What do you think?" Elizabeth said from near the railing. Barbossa looked at her and laughed.

"Ye've a point there. Of course, it takes a pirate to know one and you've been doing a fair share of lying yourself as of recent, Miss Swan," Barbossa said.

"Please! Let's not argue with each other. Look, we need to combine our heads and think of a way to get out. Breeding conflict when we haven't even set sail yet would be pointless and I imagine being lost in this place will only exacerbate that over time. We have to be better than that," Aqua insisted. "Captain Barbossa, get this ship moving."

"Aye! Aye!" Barbossa yelled.

* * *

 ** _The Flying Dutchman, At Sea_**

As the Dutchman surfaced above the water in between two ships, the sailors harbouring them knew they stood little chance. The Dutchman was quick and merciless. They were small and slow in comparison. Still, they would have attempted to have fought back, would being the key word for no sooner had the Dutchman risen from its deep slumber than its arsenal of many cannons had begun firing on both sides. A quick death—a gift, if rumors of the Captain of the Dutchman's cruelty were anything to go by.

From where he was standing, the masked boy was hardly affected by the devastation and chaos around him. On the contrary, he was quite pleased with the outcome. He took his attention of the smoking wreckages now behind him and clapped slowly but deliberately at Davy Jones to alert him to his presence.

"Good job! You've done well. You really are the backbone of KRONOS. Ruthless right down to the very last bone. Sometimes I wonder if you have a heart. Oh wait! Touchy subject?"

"Get off my ship! I will not have you or David Xanatos or the East India Company anywhere near it!" Jones yelled.

"Now, is throwing a temper tantrum really going to work? What, don't tell me you're feeling regret? Was this not what you had in mind when you joined up? Did- did you hope you could be… free to sail the seas without a giant noose hanging over your head? Did you hope that by cutting out your own heart you could be free of all the pain and suffering that comes with it? Please… don't make me laugh. Nothing—sorry—no thing in this world is free, and even you who are eternal are no exception. There is always a price to be paid."

Jones sneered at him but when he realized that staring into the emptiness of a black mask would prove futile, he backed down. "Then at least get that blasted thing off my ship."

"Yeah, about that… David Xanatos has paid the East India Company an exorbitant—that's a big word—exorbitant sum of munny to keep the chest safe at all costs. As such, they've felt the best place to hide it is not in fact buried in the ground, but on your ship," the masked boy said. As if on cue, another ship soon arrived at a dead stop near the Flying Dutchman, and after a plank was laid across, a group of soldiers marched on board. The masked boy held out his hand, materializing a chest. "Take good care of it. I've grown somewhat attached to it. Its owner wishes he could say the same."

As the company soldiers entered the cabin with the chest, the masked boy left Jones' side and approached Ian Mercer, Lord Beckett's right hand man and the last to board the Dutchman. "Xanatos has done the company a great service. It won't be long before we have control over every part of the world."

"Yeah, that's not likely. Anyway, I'll be staying on this ship for the time being, just in case. I'll do my best to keep your men safe," the masked boy replied with indifference, surprising Mercer for a moment.

"Well- er- staying on a ship full of the dead… as long as the heart's here, you should have little trouble. Still, I'm just glad it's not me," Mercer said with a slight chuckle.

"Are you trying to be funny?" the masked boy asked. He clearly wasn't amused. He continued, "Besides, it's hard to fear the dead when you were never truly alive to begin with."

All this served only to leave Mercer in confusion, but the boy did not elaborate further. He left and headed towards the bow of the ship to watch the calm seas. Not even it could soothe the tempest that was his soul incarnate.

* * *

 ** _The Black Pearl, Davy Jones' Locker_**

Sora joined Aqua, Luna and Kupopo by the Black Pearl's railing. They had long since departed from the shores of the locker and had already sent a day on its seas with not an exit in sight. They had only boundless sea to surround them, but it was still calming and it allowed Sora time to think.

"The sunset's beautiful, even on the other side," Aqua commented.

"It is. Aqua, you said you saw Kairi?" Sora asked.

"Right. She's on a mission. Not one given to her by Master Yen Sid but her own mission. You remember our John Doe's alchemist lab hidden deep under the Notre Dame Cathedral?" Aqua asked.

"I do. The one with Alice's name, right?" Sora asked.

Aqua nodded. "Well, when we were chasing after Kefka a few months back, we found out that there was something even farther down. Underneath the table where that Chimera's body was lying, there was a hidden path that took us down into a network of tunnels. At the end of the cave was door. Those doors are what Kairi's searching for. Behind each one of them is what they call the true lights of the world and the doors themselves can only be opened by a Princess of Heart. Kairi believes that the Princesses are the guardians to these doors. If one of the princesses were to fall or if the light behind those doors were to become corrupted by darkness, the world would fall into a state of atrophy. And that's only the fundamentals of it. Each of those doors has a keyhole which acts as a fold in time. You go through one of them and you emerge on the other side in a completely different time."

"They're like wormholes!" Luna said.

"Exactly. We eventually came across Mickey and he started travelling with her while I left them to continue my own mission," Aqua said.

"What's that?" Sora asked.

"Yen Sid asked if I could help with gathering people from all over the world to help. This war isn't going to just affect Keyblade wielders but everyone else as well. As things stand, we can't do much on our own, especially when we're all separated. That's why Yen Sid suggested a union of representatives from different worlds. It will allow us to keep in contact with each other and provide resources when the others are in need of it. Within that larger forum you have a smaller taskforce which helps to keep watch on the goings on in each world. The hope is to gather enough within a certain timeframe to take back Radiant Garden from Horus," Aqua said.

"Ah! That makes sense. The Blue Fairy mentioned that she had an appointment with King Triton back when we left Merlin's. I wonder if that's what it was for," Luna said.

"It is. It's a project we've had to keep close to our chests in fear of the other Keyblade factions getting hold of what we're trying to do," Aqua replied. "Even after this war is over, this new model could change the entire face of how everyone connects. Master Yen Sid's allowed Neuge to head the operation."

"That's great for Neuge. I know she didn't agree with how things were done before so this is her chance to really change things," Luna said.

"Yeah, I'm glad for her," Sora agreed, though he imagined a condition Yen Sid had given her had involved staving off the heavy drinking for a while.

"So what have you two been doing?" Aqua asked. Since they weren't exactly pressed for time, Luna was able to fill in everything that had happened from the moment they left the islands to meeting Yeul again and their current journey. Not once did Aqua interrupt, and she could have done so easily since the idea of Yeul being alive seemed a little absurd, but through her simply listening and reacting by facial expressions alone, Sora could tell that she really believed them.

"That's amazing! I'm so glad things worked out for you two. You were stressing over Yeul's death quite a bit, weren't you, Sora?" Aqua asked.

"Yeah. And Xanatos took advantage of it. It doesn't matter now though. We have to get those pieces of heart back and save Kingdom Hearts," Sora said.

"Well, I'll do what I can to help for now. I just hope you understand that I can't stick around for too long. Neuge and Master Yen Sid are counting on me," Aqua said.

"It's alright. We've done well this far. The only problem we're going to have now is actually getting to those places. No Gummi Ship," Sora said.

"Things might not be too bad there. Balthier and Fran say they have an airship back at Port Royal. If you ask them, they should be able to help," Aqua said. At this, Sora and Luna looked at each other in excitement before looking back to Aqua.

"Well there we go!" Luna exclaimed.

"Actually, I'll go ask them for you. Hopefully, Balthier doesn't change the topic to flirting again." Aqua visibly shivered and walked towards the captain's cabin. However, Sora soon found his view cut off by Luna stepping in front of him.

"We need to talk," she said in a serious tone.

"Uh-oh, I'm not gonna like this, am I?" Sora asked.

"That depends on you. What did the fake you mean by a prophecy? He seemed pretty adamant that you knew," Luna said.

"It doesn't matter, okay?"

"It matters to me. I thought we agreed to be honest with each other. You know I wouldn't hide something from you even if I felt myself that it was insignificant. You can tell me, can't you?" Luna asked.

"I can… but I won't," Sora replied. At Luna's sigh, Sora quickly added, "Some things just aren't worth mentioning. And it's not something I want to think about anyway."

"Sora…" Luna was about to stay something else, but she stopped upon seeing Sora's hardened gaze stare off into the sea. "I just need to know one thing. Was it about you?"

"It was," he confirmed.

Luna nodded and lifted her hands up, placing them on his face and turning it to meet her. Sora's face softened up immediately.

"Okay, I'm sorry. But promise me that you'll tell me when you're ready," she said.

Sora moved his own hands and took hers into his own. "And what if that never happens?"

"If you promise me now, it won't matter."

Sora smiled at her and gave her a chaste kiss on the forehead. "I promise I'll tell you."

In all honesty, Sora had never planned to completely hide Namine's vision away. It was just that it had been so vague that he never really knew what to do with it. Everyone dies. That was just a fact of life. And yet, she had seen his death specifically and the result that followed. What followed after was somewhat more terrifying. She had said something about the worlds crying tears of blood in his name before drowning in those tears. For the life of him, he couldn't figure out what that meant. All he knew was that he had no intention of dying soon. He couldn't die. He just couldn't. Plus, there was no timer on these visions. They could happen tomorrow or well into the future and even then the future wasn't a set path for sure. The tiniest actions of today could affect tomorrow in enormous ways. There was just no point worrying about it.

"I actually agree with you anyway. There are more important matters to discuss." Luna turned around to see Balthier and Fran walking up to them. "Such as why we were attacked by the Kraken."

Balthier gave a lopsided smile. "Maybe he likes you?"

"Balthier, did you give the heart back to Davy Jones or not?" Luna asked.

"Ah, you see, there were complications," Balthier started.

"How complicated can it be to give a heart over? Do you want to live?"

"Now, hold on, I assure you that's not how this went down. I do admit I had reservations about handing the chest over at first. Giving it over to Jones would only cement his control over the seas while keeping it would at least leave him vulnerable, that thought did cross my mind. Of course, after a certain someone." Balthier looked over at Fran. "Managed to convince me otherwise, I decided to stick with the plan. We were about to set sail when someone in a black wearing a mask came out of nowhere and apprehended the blasted chest. As such, we have no idea where it even is and Jones probably thinks we failed to honor our end of the bargain."

"A guy with a mask?" Sora asked. His eyes widened and he asked, "Was he wearing something that looked like synthetic armor?"

"Indeed he was. The material could certainly be considered otherworldly," Fran said. "More importantly, I sensed a sharp anger coming from him. A rage that cannot be quelled. It was… troubling."

"And a Viera's senses are pretty on the nose. A man, or boy I should say for it had the physique of one, who hides behind a mask would surely have secrets to hide," Balthier said.

"The guy who burned down Colette and Steph's house. I really hope we don't have to meet him again," Luna said.

"I hope we do. Who just burns down someone's house down like that? They have to be sick in the head," Sora said. And it hadn't even been the first time Stephanie had been involved in a fire either. The person responsible then had been Vanitas but Sora was sure he was gone. So then just who was this person who dared to dress like him and copy him in the exact same way?

"Well if we aren't here by sunset I doubt you'll be seeing another human being again let alone the man in the mask," Balthier said. His hand found their way around a locket on his neck. "I have a sister. She and I used to play around a lot in our father's laboratory when we were children. She liked fairy tales a lot, well into her teens even. A few years back however, she suddenly collapsed. It was a heart problem, the cause of which was due to her premature birth. Confined to her bed, all I could do for her was read fairy tales. It never mattered how many times we had read the same old book. She always found something new to discuss about it and I always took great enthusiasm in our conversations. Our father, I've already told you about. He was always absorbed in his own work and had already given up on her the moment he'd heard that she had only a few years to live."

"Balthier… I'm so sorry. No father should ever act the way yours did," Luna said.

"I don't think too much about him honestly. Anyway, one day I decided to give it a try and come up with a story of my own. I wanted to give her something special so I came up with a story about a pirate in search of a world teeming with treasure. That world was called Treasure Planet. He was a noble pirate who sought to make his sister happy by finding her the greatest treasure of all. She then asked me if I thought Treasure Planet actually existed. I obviously couldn't say no. She then said that she wished the two of us could go there one day but that she didn't think she would be able to make it. I don't know why I said what I said next but I told her I would look for it for her and find her that great treasure."

"You're a good brother," Luna said.

"That depends on who you ask, I'm afraid. Would a good brother have left his dying sister alone just to chase after something he might never obtain? What if he were to obtain it? Would his sister even be there to see the things he'd found? Would a good brother continue to lie to himself about a mythical land full of the greatest treasure? Maybe it is but a fool's fancy-"

"And maybe it's not," Sora said. "If a place called Atlantis can exist then why not Treasure Planet? Also, I don't think your sister would have wanted you to waste your life staying by her side. Even if she isn't alive when you get back, and I hope that she is, then I'm sure her wish would be that you could be happy. A happily ever after, just like her fairy tales."

"You know," Fran cut in. "The original versions of those fairy tales were nay for children. My village still contains those tales in their most gruesome form. I found them quite intriguing as a youngling myself."

"And you wonder why people avoid Viera," Balthier said. "Anyway, Aqua told us of your plight. I know I said airship but I should add that the 'air' part isn't quite working at the moment."

"We've run out of fuel. It's pretty rare to come across the type of fuel we're looking for so until then, if we travel it will be by water," Fran said.

"Not a problem. As long as we have suitable means of travel, I'm happy," Luna said and Sora quickly agreed with a nod.

"Aqua's calling us over, kupo!" Kupopo alerted them to Aqua waving at them from behind the cabin. They walked over to the mid-section of this ship where Aqua and Jack were looking over the navigational chart.

"So I was thinking…" Aqua started as she pointed towards the words written on the map. "…that if we could pull our heads together we'd have a better chance of figuring a way out of here. This map is one of the most ancient maps in the world. We got it in Singapore when we were trying to find one of the Pirate Lords there."

"Sorry. Pirate Lords?" Sora asked.

"You remember us talking about parlay when that hooded guy from your Organization showed up, yes? It's a part of what's called the pirate code which was carefully crafted by pirate captains like old Hector and I who each have a claim over a certain territory of sea," Jack explained.

"So it's like an honorable thing among pirates, for behaviour and conduct?" Luna summarized.

"Exactly. After all, what would we pirates be without our honor?" Jack asked. When Sora gave him a look, he smile back and said, "Don't answer that."

"Of course," Sora whispered back. "So they're like Keyblade Masters then? It's like a lineage passing down the title from one pirate to the next?"

"Sure. I don't know what you're talking about but that's exactly it," Jack said. He turned their attention back down to the map with a quick tap of his fingers. "And it seems our ancestors have left us with a bloody confusing riddle."

"'Over the edge and over again. Sunrise sets flash of green' and then a second sentence which we uncovered just a while ago: 'Up is down'," Aqua read the words inscribed. "Well, we already figured out the flash of green part. It's supposedly what signals that a soul has returned from the dead into the world of the living. I think we need to trigger the same circumstances that would bring about that green light in order to get us out of here."

"That's the easy part to decipher. Figuring out how on the other hand is another thing entirely," Balthier said.

"Well, Luna's pretty good at riddles so get that brain a-thinkin' o' small one," Sora said.

"Hey! My brain's not to be taken advantage of for your sheer amusement, thank you," Luna said. She leaned over the table and read the words over and over again silently before leaning away. "Over the edge and over again. Elizabeth told me you fell down a waterfall to get here."

"Well, I wouldn't exactly call it a waterfall. More like we just plain fell off the world's end," Balthier said.

"Not the point. You went over, right? That seems to be the key point here. The over again seems to indicate that we would have to do the same thing again."

"That would be pretty hard to do considering we fell from up-" Aqua was about to point upwards when she realized that the only thing up was the blue sky and fluffy white clouds. "Where did we fall from?"

"I think… you're looking at it the wrong way," Luna said.

"The wrong way… if you fell down then we…" Jack rotated the ship in the middle of the chart upside down and leaned back in the chair with a satisfied smile. "…need to rise back up."

"So you want us to fly the ship up?" Sora asked, not really getting what Jack was talking about.

"No, that would be impossible, plus it wouldn't fulfil the conditions of going over again. This is the land of the dead, the opposite of the land of the living. If we sink, we rise… 'Sunrise sets flash of green…', there's a deeper meaning to it. Jack's got it! We have to turn the ship over and once we do we'll be the right way up," Luna concluded.

"Oh, that's easy. Just turn a whole ship over. I'm not entirely sure I agree with this considering what you did with our last ship but I guess we don't have a choice. But how do we get the ship to sink?" Sora asked. Jack stood up and ran over to the portside of the ship.

"Ooh, what's that?" he yelled.

Taken aback by his bizarre behavior, Sora and the group felt compelled to investigate. Before they could reach the railing, Jack was already heading for the starboard side and claiming that it had disappeared to that side. Soon, more and more people joined in, spurred on by the increasing amount of onlookers Jack had managed to gather.

Though he didn't want to think back to it, during his time with David Xanatos, they had discussed many things together, including Xanatos' fascination with psychology. One thing they had talked about was the power of curiosity. Curiosity was like a virus. It had the tendency to spread easily like gossip. It could take form as something juicy and appetizing and was very easily satisfied. The simple action of running across a ship and back again was enough to distract the sailors aboard the Black Pearl from their work and they had no choice but to wonder what this man was doing, and the more they wondered, the more they hungered to know.

"Aye, he's on to it!" Barbossa said, looking down at the chart before yelling. "Let loose the cargo in the hold, you bilge rats! Let it run free!"

The ship rocked left to right, slowly at first, but with the added wait of the cargo, the ship soon became dangerously close to tipping. It soon became a matter of timing where they had to quickly move to the other side without being too soon or too late.

"It's tipping! Hold on!" Will yelled as they latched onto railing with all the strength they could muster.

"Luna, if this doesn't work out… we can't die, right?" Sora asked.

"Um," was all Luna could answer before they hit the ocean with a loud thud. Sora held his breath and counted the seconds in his head. He soon lost time however when he noticed Luna had lost her grip on the ropes. He tried to reach out to her with his left hand, but it was no good. Fran also looked down and gave Sora a quick nod before diving downwards. She caught Luna with little effort and dug the long nails of her left hand into the mast. A few seconds later, Sora looked up to see a bright green flash before feeling himself rising upwards along with the ship.

The Black Pearl soon emerged out of the water once more, allowing them all to catch their breath.

"I have an idea. Let's never do that again," Sora said.

"I agree. Bubble magic might have helped us breathe easier but I couldn't have applied it to everyone on time, what with how spontaneous Jack's actions were," Aqua said, lying on the ground next to him. Sora helped her up and she looked towards the horizon. "It's sunrise."

"Then we made it?" Sora asked. He turned around and spotted Luna hugging Fran over by the mast. The Viera seemed ill equipped to deal with the threat of hugs and could only respond by awkwardly patting Luna's hair. He also hadn't noticed it until then but also near the mast were two strange oddballs who decided it was a wise idea to tie themselves upside down. Sora decided to ignore this and instead turned to Barbossa. "So what happens now?"

"What happens now is that we summon the Pirate Lords to the Brethren Court. There is a song that tells of the gathering of the lords, one that is not oft heard on these waters. We pirates have been rulers of the seas for many years, as has been our right given to us by the first generation of the Court. Now that right is being threatened by Lord Cutler Beckett and his ilk. They would see us annihilated, and for what? For simply loving the seas. Loving to be free. That is why we must gather at Shipwreck Cove and convene and guess what Jack, you're a-comin' along as well. Ye are Lord after all."

Jack bit his lower lip and held up his hands. "I have a better idea. How about I take my ship and head in the other direction."

Elizabeth stepped in front of him. "Jack, there's no running from this. Not this time."

Jack snorted. "That's hilarious coming from you."

Barbossa stepped in his way next as he tried to move. "If we don't stand together, they'll hunt us down until there's nought left but you."

"Oh, I quite like the sound of that. Captain Jack Sparrow, the last pirate!" Jack said.

"Jack, you can't be serious. I don't know about adventure of the seas, but I sure do know about the skies. I'll help the pirates because I can imagine what it would be like to lose something you love doing. Remember, you only live once. Don't do something you might end up regretting, because even if you outlive them all, that guilt will outlive you longer," Luna implored.

Jack remained silent for a while. Eventually he let out a conceding sigh and looked at Barbossa. "The Brethren Court it is then."


	23. A Broken Heart

**A/N: Almost done with Pirates. Yes, the chapters have been getting longer because of trying to fit things in and even then I still had to cut quite a bit. I think these chapters work best if you have the movie as a supplement to them. Also, quickly about the flashback in chapter 19, it's not Kohle but you'll be seeing more about that person later on in other flashbacks along with Pandora. Stay tuned!**

* * *

Chapter 22

A Broken Heart

It was the following night on the Black Pearl when Aqua was to learn of a person scheming behind their backs. Unable to get any sleep, she had slipped out into the cold envelopments of a starless sky and proceeded to look on into the darkness. As was par for the course for her, her thoughts naturally drifted towards Ventus and Terra, hoping that they were safe in a world that was lonelier than ever. She took out her Wayfinder and turned it in her hand. She had almost failed to notice a small object floating in the sea.

She pocketed her Wayfinder quickly and summoned her Keyblade, lighting it up so she could see into the darkness. The light shone on the barrel and revealed further that there was a man lying on top of it, his body bound to the barrel with thick rope.

"Sir? Hey!" she called out to him, but he didn't respond. She turned around hoping she could alert someone but instead her view was blocked by someone else. She jumped in surprise and looked away for a moment to calm her nerves.

"Oh, Will! You scared me. Anyway, no time for that. There's a man overboard. We have to help him," Aqua said.

"There's little you can do for him now," Will said.

"What do you mean? Maybe he's still-" Aqua paused as she realized what had transpired. "It was you. You killed him."

"In a way but not quite. He's just knocked out. Actually, it was easier than you think. You'll be surprised how many pirates are willing to get into a drinking competition with you. As for whether he survives or not, that's up to the East India Company when they find him. His chances aren't looking good," Will said.

"You're betraying everyone here!" Aqua argued.

"Well, betraying would imply that I was on their side in the first place. Don't get me wrong, I don't care about the East India Company either. I'm only doing this for my father's sake," Will said.

"You're father? What happened to him?" Aqua asked.

"He's on the Dutchman in Davy Jones' service. I promised him that I would set him free. That's why I struck a bargain with Beckett, the man in control of Jones. I would lead him to Shipwreck Cove where they would apprehend the Pirate Lords and in exchange, Jones would give up my father," Will told her.

"And you were so close too." Jack said, alerting the both of them to his presence. He walked over to them both and looked over the ship to see the body and floating barrel. "You thought of all this by lonesome?"

"I said to myself, think like Jack," remarked Will.

"Ah, but had you truly thought like me, you would have noticed that something's missing. A certain… oddity about the situation we find ourselves in," Jack said.

Will thought about it for a second before saying, "You haven't raised an alarm."

"Precisely. Of course, if you also thought like me you would know that this isn't the first time I've seen you doing this and I've chosen to remain quiet because I do so value the bond between you and your dear dad. How does your dearly beloved feel about this plan of yours though?" Jack asked. Will hesitated to answer and Jack gave a silent gasp. "Ah, you've not see fit to trust her with it then?"

"I'm losing her. The closer I get to rescuing my father, the further Elizabeth slips away from me. My heart's being tugged in two directions. Very soon it could tear me apart," Will said.

"Then there needs to a compromise somewhere. Something that works for Elizabeth and your father. I don't know where that intersection is but you might," Aqua said.

"It won't be easy I imagine," Will replied.

"No, the things worth fighting for often aren't," Aqua replied.

Jack batted his eyelids and walked in between Aqua and Will. "And while that would be something of an idea, it is not the best one. If I may lend a machete to your intellectual thicket—avoid the problem altogether. Assume that the facts are wrong. You shouldn't be asking what you can do, but what someone can do for you. The answer when you think of it like that is rather simple—let someone else dispatch Jones."

"You? You want to stab the heart?" Will asked.

Jack cleared his throat and began walking back and forth. "See, death has a curious way of reshuffling our priorities. I slip aboard the Dutchman, find the heart, stab the beating thing, your father goes free and you're free to be with your charming murderess. A win-win if I ever saw one."

"Except it's not, because you become the Dutchman's Captain if you stab the heart," Aqua intervened. "That's right. I've done my research. And even if you live for an eternity, you still have to do the job."

"Exactly, otherwise you'll end up just like Jones. So, are you still willing to do that? No land for a decade and even then, it's only a day," Will said.

"I'll think of something. I only have forever to do it," Jack said as he walked off and returned with a barrel in his hand. He pulled a compass out of his pocket and pressed it into Will's hand.

"What's this for?"

"Think like me and it will come to you," Jack said. He leaned in and exhaled a puff of his breath into Will's face. Taken aback by the strong rummy smell, Will became disorientated and fell backwards, off the railing and into the cold waters.

"Jack, what are you doing?" Aqua asked as Jack next threw the barrel overboard.

Jack waved to Will as he swam for the barrel. "Give my regards to Davy Jones, will you?"

"So you're just going to let him tell them where we're going?" Aqua asked. "Jack, please tell me this is some elaborate plan to lure them into a trap."

Jack hesitated for a moment before replying. "Okay then. This is some elaborate plan to lure them into a trap."

"Jack!"

"Get some sleep. You'll need it!" Jack said as he walked off. "You'll soon see how we pirates do things."

A worried frown appeared on Aqua's face. "If it's anything like what I just witnessed, I'm not so sure."

* * *

 ** _The Brethren Court, Shipwreck Cove_**

Pirate ships stacked on top one another formed the building in which the gathering of the nine Pirate Lords was to take place in. As the Black Pearl slowed down as it sailed through the narrow pathway of Shipwreck Cove, everyone came out onto the deck in anticipation. The architecture of Shipwreck left quite the impression on Sora, who hastily made to take a picture with his PHS.

Aqua who was next to him looked down and smiled. She took out a PHS from her own pocket to show him. "You have that too? I really only use mine for reminding myself of things I need to get done."

"Yeah, they're pretty handy. Since Jiminy's not around with us, I try to keep my own journal. Luna and I have also been taking photos of the places we've been so we can show her aunt," Sora said.

"That's a nice gesture of affection. Maybe once this is over we can get Cid to develop the photos and make an album with them. I'll start taking pictures too," Aqua said. "I can't say I have a sense for what makes a good photo but-"

"Neither do I. Just do what feels right to you, I guess. It's worked so far for me," Sora advised.

"I don't even need to look at your photos to see that," replied Aqua, looking back at the giant stack of ships.

"You didn't hear the argument that broke out earlier today, did you?" Sora asked. He glanced quickly at Barbossa before adding, "There was some kind of argument going on between Barbossa and Tia Dalma. The next thing that happens, she's sent off to the brig by two of Barbossa's guys, Pintel and Ragetti, I think their names were."

"You and I could only ever hope to understand the minds of pirates. Want me to see if I can talk to Tia about it?" Aqua asked.

Sora considered it but eventually shook his head. "Wouldn't want you to miss out on the fun. I'm not even the slightest bit interested in politics but I have to see democracy done pirate-style."

That, Aqua could most certainly agree on. "We'll just have to wait and see."

* * *

The banging of a cannonball on the table signalled the fourth summoning of the Brethren Court since its inception. It hadn't yet dawned on Sora and Luna that they were standing in history and were about to become a part of something that not many before them had ever had the chance of experiencing.

"Just how rare are these meetings anyway?" Luna whispered to Gibbs. She was holding Kupopo protectively in her arms.

"Well, put it this way. There's not been a gathering like this in our lifetime," Gibbs whispered back. "And now, in order to be heard, each Pirate Lord has to present a gift, what is called the nine pieces of eight, or that was the original plan at the first Brethren Court anyway, but it turned out that one pirate turned up skint broke. Too much gambling… so he claimed, though it's more likely that he was just a really unsuccessful pirate. Now, they just present whatever happens to be in their pockets at the time."

The group watched from the back of the room as the six pirates around the table threw their own piece of junk into the bowl that was being passed around. Eventually it arrived at Barbossa, who motioned for Ragetti, a lanky pirate who had a wooden eye as a replacement for his missing right eye.

"I kept it safe, just like you asked," he said. Barbossa rolled his eyes and slapped him on the back of his head, popping the wooden eye out of its socket and into the bowl.

"Eye, for one, am disgusted, kupo," Kupopo said.

Barbossa picked up the bowl and held it out to Jack. "Your turn."

"Just a moment," Balthier interrupted. He scanned the room for a moment before returning to Barbossa. "You are aware that there are only eight Pirate Lords in this room, yes? It doesn't take a keen eye to realize that either. You're one captain short, but that won't work now will it Barbossa? It's nine pieces and nice pieces exactly."

"And who are you supposed to be?" asked one of the Pirate Lords, Mistress Ching of the Pacific.

"Why I'm the leading the man. The one who will lead us out of this mess and your next Pirate Lord," Balthier proclaimed. There was silence around the room at first before suddenly erupting into raucous disapproval. Balthier nodded his head as if admitting something to himself and walked over to Aqua. "Well, can't say I didn't try."

"After you did something like that, I'm not really sure you should be surprised that no one took you seriously," Luna said to him.

"He may not be a Pirate Lord, but I am," yelled Elizabeth. The room fell into silence once more as she walked towards the bowl and dropped a piece of eight into the bowl. "Sao Feng was murdered and in his place he left me as captain."

"You? A captain? Oh, now they're just giving the bloody title away," Jack murmured.

"I saw him die with my own eyes," Elizabeth continued. "And his fate will be ours too if we continue to do nothing. Beckett and his men have declared war and they are coming."

"And what do you propose we do?" asked another pirate, Villanueva of the Adriatic.

"We fight," Elizabeth said.

"You're kidding! We're talking about an army that has the full backing of Davy Jones and the Flying Dutchman," Mistress Ching said. "Besides, Shipwreck Cove is a well-guarded and nigh impenetrable fortress that has stood the test of aggression over many years. We have no need to fear."

"Nigh impenetrable, yes, but I do believe there is a third course of action that must be considered," Barbossa said, somehow rising above the others more than he had already been before. "In an age of tumultuous waters, in this very spot, the first Brethren Court sealed the Goddess Calypso and bound her to her human form. Aye, we tamed the sea for ourselves, but we opened the door to Beckett and his ilk instead. Better were the days when Mastery of the seas came not from bargaining with eldritch creatures but by the sweat of man's brow and the strength of his back alone. Y'all know this to be truth. Gentlemen, ladies. We must free Calypso."

Another deafening silence before chaos broke out. Cries rang out of "Shoot him!" and "Cut out his tongue!" Their talking on top of one another soon receded to an argument, with those who agreed with Barbossa and those who didn't.

"And here I was hoping I could pick up some ideas on how these things were conducted to give to Neuge," Aqua said.

"It's a wonder they get anything done around here," Sora replied.

"And even worse, our enemies could be at our doorstep at any moment," Elizabeth said. Aqua suddenly shivered and looked over to the entrance, her gaze fixated for a moment.

"It can't be…" she exhaled.

"Aqua? Is something wrong?" Luna asked.

"I'm not sure. I'm going to head out for the moment. I think I need some air," Aqua said.

"We can come with you if you-"

"No. Stay here. Don't worry, I'll be back soon" Aqua said. She took off for the entrance without waiting for a response.

* * *

The masked boy released his grasp on the dead pirate, dropping him into the harbor below. He looked up at the Black Pearl, where Davy Jones was currently meeting with his beloved after receiving information from Will Turner that the sea goddess was somewhere on board the vessel.

It seemed ridiculous to the masked boy that a creature such as Davy Jones still had affection after all those years of loneliness and yet, there those emotions lingered. On several occasions, the boy had heard the captain of the Dutchman sleeping to the sound of a music box. Now, the boy had heard that music was the gateway to the expression of the self and that one could learn a lot about someone just from listening to their tastes. Therefore, he didn't need Jones to tell him that he was a very tragic, lonely creature who had locked himself away from the rest of the world. In fact, placing his heart inside a chest had very much already told him that fact as well.

"I knew someone else was here. Who are you?" Aqua yelled, summoning her Keyblade. "Wait a second… Vanitas?"

"Why does everyone keep calling me that? Seriously…" The masked boy summoned two curved daggers into his hands and charged forward. Before he reached her, his entire body phased out and he reappeared in the air above her. Aqua quickly raised her barrier, the dagger connecting with the shield, repelling the masked boy away.

He landed back on his feet and dodged Aqua's magic as he made her way back to her. He crossed blades, leaving them both deadlocked and struggling for dominance.

"I wonder… what makes you tick, Aqua?" the boy asked.

"How do you know my name? I ask again—who are you?" Aqua asked.

"I suppose… you can call me Nil. I think that's appropriate," the masked boy replied. The blades on his dagger lit up with light and he slid upwards, pushing Aqua back. Dematerializing his Keyblade, Nil opened up a corridor of darkness before looking back to Aqua. "I wonder how Terra and Ventus are doing right now."

"Stop. I said stop!" Aqua yelled. She ran forward and stuck her hands out in an attempt to reach for the dark portal but it disappeared before she could reach it. She took her Wayfinder out of her pocket and looked at it. The Wayfinders they held relied on the light of the stars to work. With them gone, Aqua's attempts at trying to communicate with them had failed each and every time. "Terra, Ven, please be alright."

* * *

"Well, this has been going on for some time now," Sora yelled over the loud noise that had filled the entire room. Some of the pirates around him had even resorted to engaging in brawls with one another.

"Maybe we should intervene before they end up killing each other," Luna yelled back.

"No, not a good idea unless you're looking to die instead," Balthier disapproved. "Captain Barbossa, you're here to sell a point, yes? Then sell it. Convince them there's no other way."

Barbossa grunted at him before stepping onto the table and pulling out his gun, shooting upwards.

"It was the first Court that bound Calypso, and we will be the ones to set us free and she in her gratitude will see fit to present us a most gracious outcome," Barbossa said.

"How utterly convincing," Balthier remarked sarcastically.

Jack pointed at Balthier. "He has a point there. And we can do as Hector says." He turned to address the Pirate Lords at the table. "We can free Calypso and hope that her no doubt deep-seated grudge against us has withered with the passing of time. Not likely. On the other hand, we can do as this young…" Jack looked at the elderly Mistress Ching and corrected himself. "Spry woman suggests and hold ourselves up here with all our provisions and resources, in which case half of us will be dead within a month. Ergo, ipso facto, and I cannot believe I am saying this, I agree with Captain Swann. We must fight."

Elizabeth looked momentarily surprised by this but soon smiled at Jack before returning to her gaze to the rest of the table. "Are there any objections?" she asked.

"Yes, that would be the whole table. Generally an act of war, which is what this is, requires official approval of the Pirate King. The problem with that is that a King has not been elected in a long time," Barbossa said.

"You just made that up!" Jack accused.

"Did I now? I call upon Captain Teague, the keeper of the code," Barbossa said. Jack's face went immediately pale and it didn't take Sora long to see why as a shadow loomed over Jack.

"You're in my way, boy," the gruff voice rang out. It was out of fear (or perhaps respect?) that the entire hall fell silent at the appearance of the man. Jack quickly scrambled out of the way and the man set the giant tome in his hands on the table. He then whistled and a dog came in, carrying keys in its mouth.

"How in the world…?" Sora said without meaning to say it out loud. He quickly covered his mouth, by Captain Teague glanced briefly at him.

"Sea turtles, mate," he simply said, as he unlocked the book.

"The answer to the ultimate question is forty-two. Well, unless you're a pirate, in which case it's sea turtles, mate," Luna said in a low voice so only Sora could hear.

"Barbossa is right," Teague said, pointing at the page he had settled.

"Wait a moment." Jack leaned over and quickly read to himself. " _It shall be the duty of the king to declare war, parlay with said adversaries_ … fancy that."

As they discussed the code, Sora looked to his left to see Aqua slipping back into the room. She stood next to him and quickly told him and Luna about her fight with the masked boy and his warning about Terra and Ven.

"If you're worried about Terra and Ven, you can go, Aqua. We won't hold it against you. We understand," Sora said.

"No, Terra and Ven are more than capable of handling themselves and besides, he could, and it's very likely, have been trying to incite some sort of irrational response from me. I'll stay here and help for the time being. What's going on now?" Aqua asked.

"They're trying to decide who will be the King of the Brethren Court. They need one to declare war on Beckett," Luna said. "I just didn't think we'd be walking from one battle right into another so soon. I really hope this isn't a recurring thing."

As with all things pirate-y, they quickly found out how complicated the voting process could be to elect the new Pirate King. It was all good and well to have a leader, but the problem was that everyone thought they could be that leader. As the votes went around the table, each of the pirate captains happened to share a common theme with the others next to them—they all voted for themselves. Each and every single one of them declared their own names in the vote, even Elizabeth. Sora wanted to question if that was even legal but the idea of bringing up legality in a room full of pirates seemed questionable at best.

"Elizabeth Swann."

The whole room turned to Jack as he uttered the name. No one could have predicted it, and because of that it took a few seconds for everyone to process.

"What?" Elizabeth eventually broke the silence.

"I know, curious isn't it?" Jack said with a grin.

"Why not vote for me?" Villanueva asked. As the room broke into chaos once more, Jack held up his hand again.

"I assume you won't be following the code then?"

There was a snap of a guitar string and everyone turned their heads back to Captain Teague who had fallen back into the shadows of the room.

Mistress Ching quickly tried to move along matters. "W-what say you then, Captain Swann, king of the brethren?"

All eyes fell on Elizabeth for the second time that night as she scanned the room before saying, "Prepare every vessel that floats. At dawn, we go to war."

* * *

 ** _The Following Morning…_**

"We can still run, you know," Balthier said as the Black Pearl sailed alongside its Brethren ships. The morning was cold and their surroundings blanketed by haze. Sora wondered how that would affect the battle, if at all.

"That doesn't sound like something the leading man should say," Luna pointed out.

"He has a point though," Sora said. "We could leave right now if we wanted. The only thing that would be stopping us is a moral obligation. Outside of that, as Keyblade Wielders we shouldn't be involving ourselves in fights like this."

"But…"

"But it's not like this is first time we've done something like this. It's just not in our nature to run away. Sorry, Balthier," Sora said.

Balthier chuckled. "I had a feeling you'd say that. Then Fran and I will gladly stand and fight beside you. Ah, the enemy approaches."

Sora started into the fog, seeing what looked like the silhouette of a single ship heading towards them. He stifled a laugh. It seemed way too easy. He was right to feel that way as well. The color drained from his face and all those around him as seconds later, the rest of the armada emerged from the fog. Sora felt everyone's stares as they travelled to the man next to him, Jack Sparrow.

"Parlay?" he signalled unconfidently among murderous stares.

After a series of somewhat frivolous exchanges between The Black Pearl and Beckett's ship, the HMS Endeavour, the parties finally agreed to meet on neutral soil on a spit of land nearby. After volunteering to go with them, Sora set out along with Jack, Barbossa (accompanied with the monkey Jack) and Elizabeth to the small island. The fog had since cleared since the early morning and there wasn't a cloud in the endless blue sky.

Awaiting them at the end of the sandspit were Cutler Beckett, Will and Davy Jones, the latter of who needed buckets filled with sea water in order to step onto land.

"So you be the cur that led these dogs to our doorstep," Barbossa snarled at Will.

"It's not Mr. Turner's fault. Rather, you only need look to your left if you wish to see the grand architect of the plan," Beckett said. Jack seemed to shrink as everyone's eyes fell on them. Becket smiled and held up a compass before tossing it over to Jack. "Now come on, Jack, don't be bashful, step up and claim your reward. How else would this have come into my possession by Mr. Turner if not for you handing it over to him before pushing him off a ship?"

"You what?" Sora and Elizabeth asked Jack in unison.

"Technically it wasn't a push, so my hands are clean on this… so to speak," Jack rectified.

"My actions were my own and to my own purpose. Jack was inconsequential in the grand scheme of my actions," Will said.

"But, Will, why are you doing this?" Sora asked him.

"Because my father is aboard the Dutchman, and I intend for Jones to give him back," Will said.

"You think it's that easy, boy? Bootstrap's soul clings to the Dutchman. The cause you strive for is lost," Jones snapped back.

"No cause is lost if there is but one fool to fight for it," Will said.

Davy Jones grunted at this before looking at Jack. "You still have yet to repay your debt, Jack Sparrow."

"I would have thought I'd already had, thanks to…" Jack pointed at Elizabeth.

"You escaped!"

"Well… a slight technicality."

"I propose an exchange. Jack for Will," Elizabeth said.

"Done," Will said.

"Undone," Jack countered.

"Done," Beckett agreed.

"Undone. Jack is one of the nine Pirate Lords!" Barbossa exclaimed.

"Well, Elizabeth is the Pirate King. Doesn't she have the final say anyway?" Sora reminded them. "So done."

"I thought you had my back, mate!" Jack said.

"What do you pirates say? It's just good business?" Sora asked, exchanging a quick smile with Elizabeth.

Jack seemed like he was about to raise a counterpoint, but eventually lowered his finger. "If you insist."

Suddenly Barbossa lunged forward and cut off a lock of Jack's hair attached with a silver piece. Jack the Monkey jumped off of Barbossa's shoulder and collected the lock before jumping back onto Barbossa's shoulder.

"If ye be sayin' something, I might be sayin' something as well," Barbossa said.

"First to the finish, then?" Jack said as he switched places with Will. Beckett looked at Jack with a gratified smile before looking at Elizabeth.

"Advise your brethren, you can and all of you will die, or you can not fight in which case only most of you will die," he said.

"You first. Why don't you stare into Elizabeth's eyes and tell her what a coward you are. How you had to hire someone else to kill her father so you could keep your hands clean," Sora said. "Hattie Byrne. The name ring a bell? I was the one who forced her out of Port Royal. I gave her and her group the chance to run. I won't give you that same chance."

Beckett looked down on Sora with a sneer. "Complete oblivion then."

"Yes, for you," Elizabeth said.

* * *

 ** _Deck, The Black Pearl_**

"We'll use the Black Pearl as the flagship to launch the assault," Elizabeth strategized as the crewmembers gathered around her. While on the boat ride back, Will had explained to them Jack's plan to get to the Flying Dutchman to stab Davy Jones' heart. More than likely, Beckett's fleet would be relying on the ship that was unbeatable. If they could finish Jones before losing too much of their fleet, then the battle was for the taking.

"Oh, will we now?"

Everyone turned to see Barbossa and behind him, Ragetti and Pintel holding a Tia Dalma bound by thick rope.

"What are you doing to her?" Luna asked.

"Save the sympathy. This woman is Calypso in her human form. The time has come to release her," Barbossa said.

"Shouldn't we give Jack a chance at least?" Gibbs joined in.

"Jack can do whatever he wants but too long has control of my own fate eluded me. I will not give up what little I have of it left to Jack Sparrow," Barbossa said. He grabbed Sao Feng's necklace from Elizabeth's neck and pulled it off her before throwing it into the bowl.

"So what happens now?" Aqua asked.

"The words 'Calypso, I release you from your human bonds'. It must be spoken as if to a lover," Barbossa explained.

"Oh, then Balthier should have no problem with that then," Fran said much to the snickering of Sora, Luna and Aqua.

"Very funny, Fran. Still, I suppose it can't hurt to try," Balthier said. He walked up to Tia Dalma and caressed her chin for a moment before leaning in and whispering the words in her ear.

The pieces of eight in the bowl levitated in the air before lighting up on fire. The smoke rose up into Tia's nostrils and she let out a gasp, her head dropping soon after.

"Tia Dalma," Will said. She didn't respond so he tried again. "Calypso." This time she looked up at him with a strange alien smile. Sora watched as the bowl fell to the floor before returning to Tia and Will. "When the Brethren Court first imprisoned you, who was it that told them how? Who was it that betrayed you?"

Tia looked into his eyes. "Name him!"

"Davy Jones," Will named. Suddenly, Tia began to inflate, the ropes growing in accompaniment to accommodate her giant form. Sora had to back away and retreat to the railing along with the others as she began to take up more space on the deck.

"Holy mother of pearl. That's a big woman!" Sora remarked.

"Oh, you haven't the slightest. If you've ever been to Giant Country like Fran and I have, there's a lot more of them waiting for you there. They eat humans too," Balthier said.

"Balthier, I'm not exactly sure this is the right time to be mentioning that," Aqua told him.

Eventually Tia Dalma stopped growing and looked down on them. Barbossa seemed to be considering his words carefully before speaking again.

"Calypso, I come before you as a servant, humble and contrite. I have fulfilled me vow, and now ask your favor. Spare meself, me ship, me crew, but unleash your fury upon those who dare pretend themselves your masters, or mine."

Tia smiled at him before roaring out unintelligible words that sounded like roaring waves. Suddenly her body began to melt and turn into many crabs that washed down on them.

"Hit the deck!" Aqua yelled. Sora dropped low to the ground and protected the back of his head as the cast of crabs fell all around him. He could himself tilting slightly as the boat itself tilted under the weight of the crabs, allowing most of them to roll into the ocean. Soon the rain of crabs came to an end and Sora looked up to see that Tia Dalma had disappeared along with them.

"She didn't have to go and do that, did she?" Luna said as she detached a crab that had been gripping onto her sleeve.

"Jack was right. She probably hasn't forgiven the pirates for binding her in the first place," Sora said.

"Looks like you bet on the wrong horse, Captain," Aqua said to Barbossa after standing up. "Looks like she used you."

"A pawn to fate once more. The cruel story of Captain Barbossa," Pintel said in a sorrowful tone. Barbossa flashed him a dangerous look and he quickly apologized.

"It doesn't matter anymore. All this means is that our job is going to be a bit more difficult, but I'm sure that's never stopped you pirates before, right?" Sora asked. "You're used to going on risky ventures where victory and failure can mean the difference between life and death. If the enemy's going to destroy us anyway then we might as well go out with a bang. No cause is lost if there is but one fool to fight for it."

Will smiled at this and said, "And we have plenty to spare."

Elizabeth nodded. "Then as long as we have the clothes on our backs, there's no excuse. Hoist the colors!"

"Hoist the colors!"

As the Black Pearl raised its flag, the other ships on either side it did the same. Though they may have had their differences, this time they were all fighting for the one thing that allowed them to be them—their identity, and the freedom that came along with it. It was exactly something like this that had led Neuge and Yen Sid to start building on the co-operation between those who had previously been of other worlds.

Balthier turned to Barbossa who seemed to be looking towards the floor in deep thought. "We're going to need you at the helm, Captain Barbossa. Or should I captain this fine ship instead? I wouldn't mind."

Barbossa looked up at him and grinned. "You wish." He ran over to the wheel and began spinning it as he yelled out much to the joy of everyone, "Brace up the yards, ya cockeyed deck apes… dyin' is a day worth livin' for!"

As the Pearl sailed full speed ahead, Sora looked up to see the sky darkening and rain starting to pour. "I swear there wasn't a cloud in the sky moments ago."

"That be the least of our problems, lad. Maelstrom!" Gibbs yelled, pointing to the bow side. Sora and Luna rushed over the front and could almost feel themselves drowning at just the sight of the large whirlpool ahead. Sora pulled his eyes away and ran over to Barbossa.

"Barbossa, can't you see we're heading straight into it?"

"But of course, I have two good eyes after all and they be aimin' straight and true. HA HA HA!" Barbossa laughed. Against his better judgement, Sora reluctantly decided to believe that Barbossa wouldn't sink them into the abyss and went back to the front. The Flying Dutchman also seemed to have the same idea, dropping into the Maelstrom and using the currents to gain speed.

"Sora, is it weird that I'm kind of having fun with this? My heart's racing!" Luna exclaimed gleefully.

"I know what you mean. Now you can tell your aunt you sailed into a giant whirlpool and lived to tell the tale," Sora said. If they survived anyway, he added pessimistically in his head.

The two ships travelled deeper into the maelstrom, gaining speed as they circled each other. Their proximity was exactly what Elizabeth needed to order the start of their attack. Cannons rang out from both ships as artillery fire was exchanged. Some cannonballs missed their target completely and fell into the water only to be pulled in by the whirlpool while others hit their mark.

"Sora, Luna! Hop on!"

Sora and Luna turned around to see Aqua flying around the perimeter of the ship with her Keyblade Glider. She hovered next to them and Sora and Luna jumped on either side of the Glider before it took off once again.

"Wow! This is a pretty neat ride, Aqua!" Luna yelled through the rain and wind as they rode above the maelstrom.

"Thanks. I've never had to fly it over a giant whirlpool before nor have I ever had more than just me on it. Still, if I take my time I think we can get over to the Dutchman safely," Aqua yelled back.

"Just whatever you do. Don't look down," Sora said.

"Down? There's no down. There's only what I see in front of me and the sky above," Luna replied breathlessly.

"Not a fan of heights, huh?" Aqua asked. Before Luna could reply, Aqua spotted a cannonball coming their way and had to quickly lurch the Glider to the right. Luna quickly lost her balance and fell with a scream, managing to just about catch the bottom of Aqua's Glider. "Luna, you okay?"

"Don't look down. Don't look down," Luna repeated to herself with her eyes closed. Her hanging and kicking about wasn't doing Aqua's Glider any favors either, serving only to unbalance and drag the hangar down.

"We're right in the line of fire and I can't get high enough to avoid it. This isn't good!" Aqua said.

"Keep going, we can make it. Hang on there, Luna," Sora said.

"No, Sora, I think I'll drop to my death instead," Luna replied sarcastically. Sora summoned the Kingdom Key in his left hand and cast Aeroga as the cannonballs neared them, blowing them off course. With the conditions of the weather and thanks to Shantotto's teachings, he felt the power of his wind magic increase drastically.

"We're almost there!" Aqua shouted as they neared the Dutchman.

"I can glide from here. That's should take some of the weight off," Sora told her. He leapt off the Glider and used the wind currents to evade and flip past the cannonballs. As he aimed for a clear landing spot on the Dutchman's deck, he spotted the masked boy walking into that very same spot. Unable to find a different spot in time, Sora's Kingdom Key and the boy's dual daggers clashed while he was still in the air.

"You! Aqua called you Nil," Sora said, as he landed on his feet.

"I've been waiting for this, Sora. David Xanatos asked me to wait but I'm afraid I just can't hold back any longer. You will die, and my suffering will finally come to an end!"

"What are you-" Sora dropped his question as he was forced to block against Nil's daggers. Sora quickly leapt to the right and struck from there, but Nil was able to meet each of his swings with the daggers. Nil jumped and performed a one-two hit combo from the air in quick succession, giving Sora no choice but to hold up his guard.

A few of Davy Jones' undead sailors came in to attack Sora. It wasn't him that managed to somehow get his Keyblade away from Nil though. Nil himself took off his daggers and looked over at the sailors.

"Did I tell you to interfere?" Nil yelled. His voice sounding like a demon's through whatever modulation was affecting his voice. He raced forward and thrust his daggers into the first of Jones' men, pulling outwards and tearing through the abdomen, separating the waist downwards from the rest of the body. Nil worked from one henchman to the next with quick speed, delivering quick slashes before using a final decisive blow to take them out. He turned to the final sailor, one with a hermit crabs shell as a head, who rather than taking this risk like his comrades, decided that he would rather take the risk instead of jumping off deck and into the ocean.

"That's much better." Nil cranked his neck from side to side before looking at Sora. "Now, where were we?"

The masked boy ran rushed forward again and delivered blow after blow. Sora could feel the anger and rage coming off of each hit as he met them quickly with his Keyblade. Nil locked blades again with his right dagger and dropped the left, moving his hand below and catching it again before swiping and cutting into Sora's waist.

"Agh!" Sora gasped and backed away as the hot knife cut into his waist. Nil wasn't too far behind and grabbed Sora, pushing him into the mast. Holding his knife overhead he went in for a stab but Sora quickly manoeuvred his head to the left, the knife getting caught in the mast's wood. Taking this opportunity, Sora threw his head forward and head-butted the masked boy. If there ever time where something that had felt like a good idea at the time turned out to be a not-so-good idea at the time, this was one of them.

"Ow. Okay, that hurt. That was stupid," Sora groaned, wincing at his now throbbing forehead.

"Heh. You _are_ stupid," Nil said with a slight chuckle. He pulled the dagger out of the woodwork and pressed his arm hard into Sora's neck, cutting off his airflow.

It was an arrow of light coming from Sora's right and hitting Nil in the shoulder that released Sora and allowed him to breathe. Luna walked past him, her Keyblade transformed bow still aimed at the masked boy.

"I'm going to pay you back for Colette and Stephanie," Luna said before firing another arrow. Nil jumped back and threw the dagger in his left hand, cutting through the arrow of light on its way to Luna. She transformed her bow back into the Keyblade and swung, batting the dagger away. Using Sonic Blade, she rushed forward in a streak of blue. Nil managed to summon the dagger back into his hand and made to block but the Dream Seeker's lunge overpowered his guard and sent him flying back in to the Dutchman's railing.

The masked boy laughed and looked down into the hungry waters below before looking past Luna to Sora. "There's only one way this story ends. I kill you or you kill me. Our fight is far from over."

"Wait!" Luna yelled, but Nil flipped over the railing instead. When Luna looked over, she found no trace of the boy anywhere. "What's that guy's problem?"

"Me, apparently. Where's Aqua?" Sora asked.

"With Jack. They're fighting Davy Jones. Come on, we have to go," Luna said. Sora nodded and followed Luna right into the fray. As Davy Jones' crew flung themselves left and right in an attempt to stop them, they found themselves being ambushed by Will and Elizabeth as they landed on the Flying Dutchman from the Pearl. Spotting Aqua and Jack duelling with Davy Jones.

"Jack has the chest!" Luna noted, pointing to the black object Jack was carrying around under his left arm while fighting. Sora ran towards Jones and performed a leaping overhead strike. Jones raised his arm to block the attack, leaving him exposed to Aqua and Jack who cut Jones in opposite directions.

"We can handle it from here, Jack. Hand the chest to Luna. She can open it with her Keyblade," Sora told him. Jack nodded and ran off with Sora tagging in for him.

"Hmph. You'll see no mercy from me," Davy Jones said. He roared forward and lunged forward, meeting Sora's blade with his own. Aqua moved into attack, but Jones spun and slammed his crab claw hand into her face, flipping her over and sending her to the ground. Jones turned to stab her only to have the Kingdom Key stabbed right through his back and appearing out of his chest. Sora attempted to pull the Keyblade out of Jones, who only grinned and backhanded him to the floor with his clawed hand as well.

Meanwhile, Luna aimed Dream Seeker down at the chest and shot a beam of light at it. As she was about to open it, another crewmember came out and pushed her out of the way before advancing towards her with a sword.

"Father, don't!" Will yelled, slamming into the man from behind. The sword fell out of the man's hands and Luna scrambled to pick it up before throwing it to Will. Will caught it and looked down at Bootstrap Bill. "It's me, your son. Can't you see?"

The man seemed to hesitate at this only for a second before trying to attack to attack Will again, this time with a knife he had on him. Luna summoned her Keyblade and cast Thunder magic, paralyzing Bootstrap Bill and allowing Will to overpower him, sending his back against the railing.

"I made a promise to you. I will not kill you," Will said to him. He took his father's knife that he had managed to grab from him and stabbed it into the railing instead, much to his father's surprise.

Sora and Aqua had long since regained their footing and were doing their best to fend off Davy Jones' attacks. No matter how many hits they landed on Jones, it didn't seem to matter anyway. It wasn't so much winning as it was a test of endurance. Fortunately, being two of the most accomplished Keyblade wielders tended to have its advantages, and together they had managed to knock Jones back into Luna and the others' line of sight.

"Glad you came, Jones. To see the end."

The three of them ceased fighting and looked to see Jack with a heart in one hand and a dagger in the other. He was grinning like a child who couldn't wait to open his Christmas presents.

"You're a cruel man, Jack Sparrow," Davy Jones said.

"Cruel is a matter of perspective," Jack replied.

"Oh, is it now?" Jones suddenly turned thrust his sword forward into Will's chest.

"No!" Elizabeth and Luna yelled, running over to the fallen Will. Sora struggled to maintain his composure. He pursed his lips and looked up at the rainy sky. Aqua looked on in disgust at Jones as he laughed. Even Bootstrap Bill had managed to shake off the Dutchman's control at the sight of his son and stood up, striding over to Jones and pinning him against the wall.

"Please, Will, you have to stay with me! Luna, isn't there anything we can do?" Elizabeth asked, cradling Will in her arms.

"I- I'm sorry. The wound's too deep. My healing magic won't work on it," Luna said. She clenched her fist and slammed it down as she struggled to hold back tears. "Damn it! Why does this always happen? Just this once… why can't we win without losing?"

Suddenly Jack appeared in front of her. She looked up to see Jack placing the heart down on the ground and the knife in Will's right hand. He guided Will's hand over to the heart before bringing it and the knife down.

Davy Jones' eyes grew big and he looked over to see his stabbed heart on the ground next to Will and Jack. Bootstrap released him and stepped back as Davy Jones stumbled forward towards the railing.

"Calpyso," he managed to say before falling over and into the maelstrom.

Bootstrap looked away from the railing to his son and began walking over to him while saying, "Part of the crew, part of the ship. The Dutchman must have a captain."

"Will! Where are you taking him?" Elizabeth screamed as the other crewmembers of the ship appeared alongside Bootstrap and took Will away from her and set him aside, Bootstrap moving to take the knife that Will had stuck in the ship's railing.

"We need to go. The ship's about to sink," Jack said, grabbing Elizabeth before escaping for the Pearl via rope. Aqua transformed her Keyblade into its Glider form quickly and Sora and Luna hopped on either side. As they rode through the air, Sora looked down to see the Dutchman being swallowed whole by the maelstrom.

"Will…" Luna said with her eyes closed.

"It's not over yet," Sora said with a smile. "The Dutchman must have a captain."


	24. The Ocean Rages

Chapter 23

The Ocean Rages

Lord Beckett exited his cabin to the deck and climbed up to the stairs towards the stern of the ship. There a hot cup of tea awaited him.

"Any update on Mercer?" Beckett asked the officer nearby as he took up the teaspoon and began mixing the separated milk into the tea.

"No, sir," the officer replied. Beckett nodded solemnly and lifted the cup to his mouth. The man who had helped him get to the position he was in today was no longer, it seemed. In Beckett's eyes, Ian Mercer had been completely selfless in that he had been willing to dirty his own hands in order to help Beckett climb the ladder. To no longer see him again would be a difficult thing to stomach.

He was about to take a sip when his eyes set their sights above the cup's rim to the Black Pearl closing in on them in the distance. He set down his cup and smiled. "We may not have the Dutchman, but the superior firepower of the Endeavour vastly overpowers that of the Pearl. We'll make quick work of them then chase after the others. It's nothing personal, Jack. It's just good business."

As the two ships headed towards each other, another ship rose out from the sea with a roar. "Ah, she survived," Beckett said with a slight surprise. But of course it did, now that he thought about it. The Dutchman was nigh indestructible and with its help the East India Company would eradicate piracy the entire world over.

Beckett's look of happened turned to one of confusion as the Black Pearl and Flying Dutchman turned inwards upon meeting each other and began moving in tandem towards either side of the HMS Endeavour.

"Sir, your orders?" the officer asked, but Beckett didn't reply, or he just didn't hear. The man asked again with more urgency this time. "Orders?! Orders, sir?! Sir, what do you command?"

"I- It's just good business…" the broken Beckett whispered. He managed to swallow down the lump in his throat just about the time that the Black Pearl and Dutchman began firing at the Endeavour.

"Abandon ship!" the officer yelled after realizing he was going to get no response from his superior. The officer soon ran off while Beckett, detached from the world, remained on the spot. Eventually he started walking. He didn't know where he was going or where there even was to go, but he found himself moving down the stairs, oblivious to the flying debris and destruction around him. The last thing Beckett saw was fire travelling out from the ship's hold.

The HMS Endeavour blew up into a spectacle of many pieces and those on the Black Pearl cheered and jumped for joy at the defeat of their enemies. Sora looked over to the Flying Dutchman and saw Will waving back at them, his hand on the ship's wheel. Next to him was his father, Bootstrap Bill, who along with the other crewmembers of the ship, had been shed of their macabre forms and were human once again.

"A win without a loss… just like you wanted, Luna," Sora said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm happy. Still, now that he's captain of the Dutchman, I guess that means he can't be with Elizabeth," Luna said. "That's one day every ten years on land, isn't it? It's so unfair!"

"While I agree, I think it's having that one day that makes it so much more special," Aqua said as she approached them. "Plant a garden together, come back ten years later and see how far it's come, write your names into a tree and come back later to see the same old carving, go to the beach and watch together as the sun comes down… it's the little things, and they mean a whole lot more than you might think, especially in one day."

"You're right. As long as they can make each other smile by the end of it, a day's enough," Luna said.

* * *

After seeing Elizabeth Turner (and Sora, Aqua and Luna were surprised to hear that she and Will had gotten married on the Pearl while they were fighting the Dutchman's crew), the Black Pearl set sail and reached Port Royal by the next morning.

"I guess this our stop," Sora said as disembarking to join Luna, Kupopo, Aqua, Balthier and Fran. He turned around and looked up at Jack, Barbossa and Mr. Gibbs. "It was nice travelling with you all."

"If what you've told me is true, then you'll need this far more than I do," Jack said, throwing him something small. Sora just barely caught it and looked down to see Jack's compass. "For once, I'm glad my world is much smaller than yours."

"Jack, are you sure?" Luna asked.

"Aye, for now anyway. I may just decide one day that I want it back in which case you best be prepared to lock your door, not that that keeps a pirate like me out. I still haven't taken your Keyblade either now that I think about it," Jack said.

"And you never will," Sora replied. "Thanks, Jack. So what will you do now? The immortality thing didn't work out too well after all."

"Well I'm off, aren't I? Wherever the wind blows, there's my calling. That and some trusty help from one of the most ancient navigational charts in the world," Jack said. "They say there exists a fountain of youth somewhere in this world. Were one to drink from it, they would be granted increased longevity. Perhaps if our paths cross again someday, I'll let you help me find it."

"We'll consider it," Luna said. "That said, our teacher Shantotto gave us some wise words of wisdom—the best discoveries come from sheer chance. It's called serendipity. I hope your journey is full of serendipitous encounters, Captain Jack."

"Shantotto? Doctor Shantotto?" Jack asked.

"You know her?" Luna asked back. Jack's eyes darted from left to right for a few seconds before he grinned at her.

"Nope. Anyway, best be off. Have fun," Jack said before running off and leaving them perplexed.

Barbossa looked back to the hold where Jack had disappeared to before looking back at them. "It's best not to question the mind of Jack Sparrow. He owes quite a few people a great many things."

"I can imagine. If Jack's met her then he must know what she's like, and if he's evaded her for so long, it's only going to be worse for him when she eventually finds him," Sora said.

"Until the next time we meet then," Mr. Gibbs said. Sora and the others nodded before starting on their way down the port.

"I think this is where I have to leave you all," Aqua said as they reached Fran and Balthier's ship a few ways down from where the Black Pearl had docked.

"I was dreading this. I guess someone eventually had to say it. It was nice seeing you again, Aqua. It's just, I'm hesitant to say goodbye because I don't know how long it will be until we see each other again," Luna said.

"Hopefully soon. At least you know that there are others out there who are fighting just as hard as you two are so know that you aren't alone," Aqua said. She placed a hand on Sora's shoulder and smiled. "You should also know that nobody blames you for what happened back in the Keyblade Graveyard. Sometimes, our choices are not of our own making, or not exactly as we would like, yet we deal with the hand we're dealt all the same. No matter how unfair it is, a choice is still a choice, and all the feelings that come with the choice are yours to keep. Use them to make you stronger. Wiser. Like I did with mine."

"I will. Thanks, Aqua," Sora said. He couldn't help but smile at her words. Her dulcet tone was exactly the strength he needed to swallow down his fears. "Actually, I have favor to ask of you. We were told a while back that Xanatos might be hiding in a place called the Land of the Inca. Can you check out for us, and before that, if possible, can you go to a town called Middleton. There's a girl there, Kim Possible, who knows one of the members of KRONOS, Dr. Drakken. If you could bring her with you, that would be great. Don't worry, she's more than capable of handling herself."

"Of course I will. Thanks for telling me about her," Aqua replied. She transformed into her armor and summoned her Keyblade, quickly transforming it into a Glider before looking back at them. "Also, the alliance's HQ is in the Kingdom of Corona. Rapunzel's parents were incredibly willing to let us use their castle as our base. That's where you'll find Neuge and Master Yen Sid. When you're ready, you can go there but you need to know the password or they won't let you in. It's Wayfinder. And of course, you're invited to come if you like, Balthier and Fran. We could use your help."

"We'll see. I was never too fond of large gatherings," Balthier said.

"Well, I do know I would appreciate it a lot. Maybe even enough to give that date you've been asking about a chance," Aqua said. She hopped onto her Glider and took off into the air, gaining altitude until she looked to them like a bird in the sky.

"I wish I could fly like that. I miss the Gummi Ship," Luna said.

"Well, even if your transport was like that, you don't like heights so it would probably never work for you," Sora said. "The journey may be slower but at least we have two new faces to see now."

"We'll get the engine started. Make yourselves comfortable," Balthier said as he stepped aboard the Sheva with Fran following in tow.

"You know, this isn't like any Gummi Ship I've seen before. It just looks like a normal ship to me," Luna said.

"Camouflage. It wouldn't do to stand out amongst the crowd, would it?" Fran explained.

"A-HA! That's clever. Ours had it too but we could only blend it in with the environment," Luan said beaming. As they walked on board Sora called Luna over to the side and placed his hands in his pockets as he tried to figure out how he wanted to say it.

"Sora, what's the matter? You can tell me. You know that," Luna encouraged.

"You know about the prophecy you were badgering me about? Namine… she was with Riku at some point and I eventually found out and… she made a prophecy about me dying," Sora said.

Luna closed her eyes and breathed in before responding. "I thought it was something like that. There wouldn't be a reason not to tell me otherwise."

"Well, maybe if it involved you. I wouldn't want to tell you just out of fear that saying it might make it come true. But it wasn't about you. It's about me, and there's nothing I can do about it. I don't know when or if it will come true. It's too vague and there's hardly anything there to work with. I guess the reason I'm telling it to you now is because I was thinking about it a lot after that fight with the guy in the mask. I'll kill him or he'll kill me," Sora said.

"You wanted to get it off your chest," Luna said.

"More than that, you start thinking too much about these things and you become paranoid, constantly having to watch over your back. When Riku heard about the prophecy, he became overprotective of me. It kind of got annoying. Anyway, I just didn't want you to get distracted by something that doesn't mean much to me," Sora said.

"But it means something to me. I don't want to lose you, Sora. Still, as you say, it's too vague," Luna said. She leant her head against Sora's shoulder. "The best we can do is look out for each other, as we always have. I won't lose you."

"Don't worry, as long as you're around I'm sure you'll do just fine. You promised my mom that you'd get me back safely anyway," Sora said. He breathed in before adding, "And making sure I changed my undies."

"Oh my gosh, you heard that? That was supposed to be a secret!" Luna exclaimed, quite alarmed that Sora had heard.

"Quite frankly, my dear, I'm surprised the whole neighborhood didn't hear it," Sora said.

"And we're off… er, am I ruining the moment," Balthier said as he walked in on them. Fran appeared behind him and took him by the ear.

"I'll see that you're left alone," Fran told them before dragging Balthier away. Sora and Luna chuckled at the sight of Balthier being pulled by the taller woman, before turning to watch as The Sheva started to pull away from Port Royal.

* * *

 _Kuzco's Academy, The Ancient Kingdom_

David Xanatos rarely ever found time for meditation these days but when they did, being locked in a room with only himself and his thoughts as company was the best feeling in the world. It was impressive how the human body could fall into a state of trance through a peaceful environment, comfortable clothing, a simple yet repeating mantra and visualization of the mind.

His visualizations always started in the exact same place. In them, a field of wheat surrounded him and there was a single barn off in the distance. His objection never was to reach that barn, or at least it wasn't particularly important at the start. He took note of the swaying of golden wheat and the gentle breeze that relaxed him ever so much. This is where the visualizations would start to differ. He would choose a different direction each time, filling in the landscape as his eyes saw it. Mountains, ones that had peaks that reached all the way into the clouds. Just under them was a forest—the road he needed to travel in order to reach those mountains.

"Mr. Xanatos!"

The forest faded from his mind, as did the mountains, as did the field. He opened one eye in annoyance and looked up to see his assistant's face before opening the other and standing up.

"Couldn't have picked a better time, Owen?" he asked. "How are you, old friend?"

"I could be better. Likewise, so could you. You could use a shave," Owen Burnett said. Xanatos reached for his beard and caressed it gently before smiling.

"I don't know. I rather like it. Accentuates the whole 'on the run' thing," Xanatos replied. "I trust you didn't have any problems getting here."

"Of course. You know what I am," Owen said. "More importantly, I met a boy in a mask on my way here. He says he came to see you."

"Ah, he has a report for me. While I'm in hiding, he acts as my eyes and ears, Owen," Xanatos explained.

"But who exactly is he?"

"He's no one. Not anymore. You can send him in," Xanatos said. Burnett nodded and adjusted his slipping glasses before turning and walking over to the door. Xanatos also turned and walked up to the window his tiny room, looking out to the green mountains and valleys that surrounded him. Even without them to put his mind at ease, there was always the strange Incan masonry that he found himself walking around a few times a week on his way to the local village nearby.

"Davy Jones is no more. He fell at the hands of Sora and his friends," Nil said.

"A pity. I am going to miss that beard," Xanatos replied.

"We have no control over the East India Company either. Beckett perished alongside him. It was quite the embarrassing defeat for them, to say the least. I doubt it's one they'll want to remember," Nil continued to report.

"And the sea goddess?" Xanatos asked.

"The pirates released her…" Nil said slowly.

"Then that's one good thing to come out of this, I suppose," Xanatos said. He stretched his arms and walked over to the cheer in the corner of the room where his jacket was.

"Why does it matter to you?" Nil quizzed.

"A good player of chess understands that sacrificing certain pieces sometimes lends itself to bigger gains than what would be possible otherwise. I'm quite familiar with the tale of Calypso. It seems, in their own desperation, the pirates felt that the only way they could defeat Jones and the Company was by releasing Calypso. Now that they are out of the way, the true prize reveals herself," Xanatos answered while slipping into his jacket.

"You hope to make friends with a sea goddess? What even makes you think she'll be the least bit interested?" Nil asked.

"You underestimate how persuasive I can be," Xanatos said. "When interests align, even our greatest foes can become our most helpful allies."

"And how exactly do you propose to find her?" asked Nil.

Xanatos smiled and started walking for the door. "That's simple. Follow the path of destruction in her wake."

* * *

 _The Underworld, Olympus Coliseum_

Pain and Panic rushed up the long pathway to Hades' chamber as quickly as their tiny feet could carry them.

"Lord Hades! Lord Hades!" They screamed as they burst into the room. They stopped and looked at their master in disbelief, and their master returned their stares with a dirty look.

"What? So I do yoga. Sue me," Hades defended.

"Um, Lord Hades, if I may, someone's here to see you. She says she knows you," Pain said.

Hades stifled a laugh. "Yeah? Well tell her to line up in the queue like the rest of 'em."

"Now is that a way to greet your own cousin?"

Hades stiffened up on the spot, something Pain and Panic were not used to seeing their boss doing. He pivoted on the spot and pointed at the woman.

"Nope, can't say I recognize you. Are you lost?" Hades asked.

Tia Dalma, or Calypso, laughed. "You always were the sassy one, Hades. I quite enjoyed my time with you, when we played as children in the gardens up on Olympus… even if it was rudely cut short."

"Didn't they imprison you or something? Why are you here?" Hades asked.

"They could not hold me. It was only time before my release. As for why I am here, I have come to ask for a favor," she said. "I want us to join forces."

"Pfft, yeah right. Sorry, toots, but I'm done with alliances. First the witch and now you? Yeah, not the best pickings in the salad bowl. From now on, I'm a solo act," Hades replied.

Tia Dalma shuffled up to him and slowly snaked her right arm around his neck. "And how has that worked out for you?"

A frustrated Hades slapped her wrist away before she could fully enclose around him. Calypso had been called many things over the ages by those who knew her. The Black Mamba was just one of those. She was ever so graceful in her movement but that was merely a deception as to her true nature, a woman with venomous intentions who could bite at quite the range if provoked.

"That's none of your concern. Now if you don't mind, I have to get back to my yoga," Hades said.

The lines of Tia's mouth turned up. "Come with me. I want to show you something that will make your spine tingle."

"And what could you possibly have to show me that would ever do that?" Hades asked.

"That would ruin the surprise," Tia Dalma whispered.

* * *

 _Town of Thebes, Near Mt. Olympus_

"May the goddess Athena bless you from the comforts of your own home! This bust was personally crafted from my own hands and, in my opinion, does much justice towards the wisdom and radiance of the goddess. I am sure she as well as I would appreciate you making this a quintessential part of your home!"

The sculptor placed his hand on the bust's head and smiled as two young children, potentially brother and sister, ran up to the bust in awe. He gave a toothy grin and asked, "Like what you see? The goddess smiles down on you always."

"I want to be just like Athena when I grow up!" yelled the girl.

"You can't be! Girls can't be warriors!" the boy refuted.

"Then what's Athena?" replied the girl.

"She's different. She's a goddess. You're just the annoying sister to the true hero, the one who'll surpass Hercules one day," the boy countered.

"Now, you two, there's room enough in this world for two warriors. I'm sure Athena would say otherwise young girl, that you can be anything you want to be as long as you're willing to work for it," said the sculptor. "It's ambition that drives this world. Too many people are willing to stifle others' ambitions, but you can't give in. If you let your ambition shine like the brightest star, you will be rewarded. And if it doesn't work out, that just means your true calling is elsewhere."

"Do you think so?" the girl asked.

"I know so. Just look at this bust," the sculptor said. The children smiled. On any normal day, this would have warmed the sculptor's heart. This was not a normal day. He could very much tell that when he noticed his bust starting to vibrate. The smiles disappeared from the children's faces too of course. As did most of the other people walking down the busy street.

The sculptor stood up and looked down the street towards where he could see the ocean. Dark clouds were approaching and the sea looked to be getting less and less calm.

"Run home, children. I have a terrible feeling about this," the sculptor said. The children nodded and left his side. The sculptor… the sculptor had no home, none except for his shop where he had spent a great many months working on crafting the bust of Athena.

The sculptor scarcely had enough time to close his eyes before a giant tsunami wall of water appeared off in the distance. Cries and confusion rang out and filled the air as people made to run for their lives. The water was faster however. It reached land in no time at all and had swallowed everything in its path.

 _SMASH!_

The sculptor looked to his left where the bust had once been, and instead found it on the ground in pieces. His heart sank. If the water rushing towards him didn't somehow kill him, the feeling of emptiness he felt inside him now most likely would finish the job.

Hades watched as the water swept over the town from the nearby hills with an uneasy look on his face. Suddenly feeling a hand on his shoulder, Hades jumped and spun around to see Calypso.

"Yikes! Was that really necessary?" Hades asked. "Ugh, looking at this just gives me heebie jeebies… and I'm me!"

"You see now the power at my command? I did this for you. If we work together, there is nothing that can stop us. I will have my revenge. As for you, you'll claim your rightful place up on Olympus, just like you've always wanted," Calypso said, moving behind him to place her hands on his shoulders. "Lord Hades, King of Olympus."

"I quite like the sound of that," Hades said.

"Then you'll reconsider?" asked Calypso. She seemed to be urging him on with and playful and hopeful stare.

"Reconsider? Sure, why not? Not exactly like I'm in the gods' good graces anyway. But if I were to agree to this, then you also need to do something for me," Hades said.

"And what would that be, my sweet?" Calypso asked.

"Not calling me that for starters, also a heap load of revenge best served hot and cold," Hades said with a wicked grin.

As Hades and Tia Dalma were talking up on the hills, the town itself continued to drown in Calypso's rage. The children who met the sculptor had managed to make it to higher ground before bursting into tears. With their home gone, they had nothing left. And yet still, the water seemed to be rushing upwards. It wasn't to be satisfied until it had completely dragged in everything.

"Hey, everything's going to be okay."

The children looked behind them to see a girl with pixie-cut ebony hair and green eyes. She smiled and held out her hand to them. The girl had never been particularly good with children but when in doubt, emulating a warm smile could prove wonders, or so she had heard.

"My name's Astra. What are your names?"

"I'm Matthias and my sister's name is Chyrssa," answered the boy shakily.

"Well don't worry. I'm going to get the both of you out of here, okay?" Astra said. She summoned her Keyblade and opened up a corridor of light. "There's nothing to fear. Take my hand, close your eyes and count to ten. I may feel kind of strange at first, but it's a good kind of strange, like a fluttery feeling. And by the time we count to ten, we'll be on the other side."

"Alright… wait, are mom and dad coming too?" Chyrssa asked. "I don't want to leave without them!"

Astra's hand froze just before she could reach for the young girl. What was she to say in this situation? What was the best way to tell a child that their parents were most likely dead and wouldn't be coming with them? Astra had known loss both through her mother and grandmother, the first of who had died while birthing Astra so she couldn't say she had personally felt attached. Her grandmother, however, Astra had been old enough to feel and to have been hurt, but most importantly to know. These children couldn't have been any older than five years old. She would have to explain it in a delicate matter. Therein lay the problem. Astra was not a delicate person.

"Who knows? Maybe they're waiting for you on the other side," Astra ended up saying. She immediately regretted it. Why she had said what she had, she didn't know. She could only imagine that she had done so because they were in a hurry and giving some kind of hope was better than giving no hope at all.

"Okay. I'll close my eyes," Chyrssa said.

 _Please do_ , Astra thought as she took hold of both of their hands. She couldn't bear see her smile.

* * *

 _The Inner Gardens, Mount Olympus_

Artemis was overcome with a mixture of grief and horror as she doubled over in front of her sister, Athena. Possibly because of her affinity with nature and all things wild, she was able to sense this disturbance just before her sister.

"So you felt it too," Athena said. "Pain. Indescribable pain. Thebes, it is gone."

"But how is that possible? An entire city swept under the ocean in so little time? It's preposterous!" Artemis yelled.

"Calm down, sister. Preposterous though it may be, that only speaks to the peculiarity of this event. If we can safely assume that this disaster was not of natural cause then someone or something has upset with the balance of nature," Athena said.

"Then what say Poseidon? He has control over the seas. Surely he should know," Artemis suggested.

"He might, but we don't need to ask him. This mischievous malfeasance can only be the work of our dear aunt Calypso," Athena said.

"Calypso?" Artemis asked.

"I'm not surprised you don't remember her, considering she was exiled when we were but children. She's the daughter of the Titan Atlas and was placed in charge of the seas before Poseidon. She had a rather reckless disposition and when she was angry, you would find that her fury could not be quelled so easily. When she had a grudge, she held it tightly to her chest. One day however, I believe she fell in love with a human, obviously something that could never be and goes against the laws of Olympus. Despite the numerous warnings, she continued to persist in such a relationship. As a result, she was cast out by father. The last I'd heard of her, she had been bound by human form. I am not sure how she ended up that way but if she's been released… we must act quickly."

"I agree, but what can we do?" Artemis asked. "We gods aren't allowed to interfere with the mortal realm."

"Well, it might just be time we broke those rules, don't you think?" Athena suggested.

"Woah! Athena breaking rules? Who are you and what have you done with my sister?" Artemis asked incredulously.

"I would say the time has come to let go of preconceptions. When one of our own threatens to interfere in the mortal realm, that is when we must intervene. Besides, it's not like you're not used to breaking the rules yourself, are you, Artemis?" Athena said with a smile saying she knew more than she was letting on.

"I… I don't know what you mean," Artemis said, looking away quickly.

"Don't worry, I won't tell the others. Still, you give my perceptiveness too little credit. Your spirit is attached to someone else's, isn't it? Someone down below? Need I say more?" Athena encouraged her to spill the beans.

"No, you don't need to. As always nothing escapes you. It wasn't just any normal person either. It was a Keyblade wielder. We became friends while I was out hunting and one day she asked me if there were a way we could always see each other. I provided the solution. I put a piece of myself inside her Keyblade so that I could follow her wherever she went and see the things she saw," Artemis explained. "Now that Keyblade's passed on. I do the same for her as I've done for its previous owner."

"Then you should go to her. Guide her down the right path," Athena said.

"Are you sure, sister?"

"This war may tear the world apart. What are we gods if there is no one left to see us as so? It is through them that we have meaning. A purpose. In that sense, wouldn't you say they have the greater power then? That they can exist without us but not we without them? I would say this war threatens both of our existences, wouldn't you? And now Calypso has shown her lust for wanton destruction, I am led to believe that Athens, my own city, is under threat. That is why we cannot hesitate any longer. I will see what I can do, but in the meantime assist the Keyblade wielders as you see fit," Athena said.

"Oh, thank you so much, sis! I won't let you down," Artemis yelled with so much excitement that she couldn't help but part Athena on the back. It came of as more a slap. Immediately she recoiled and winced at Athena's annoyed glare. "Oops. Sorry."

* * *

 _Mermaid's Lagoon, At Sea_

Three days had passed since they had left Port Royal and Sora had spent most of it lying on deck and looking up at the sky in boredom. He supposed there was something to admire about not being on a Gummi Ship in that there were no walls to surround their view. The salty smell of the air that was perpetuated by the ocean around The Shiva along with its gentle breeze was not something that could be so easily obtained inside.

He took out the compass that Jack had given him and sat up to look at it. The arrow was pointing dead north, just as he wanted. The idea was that the compass would show whatever he desired and right now his heart desired to find the pieces of heart as quickly as possible. As much as he also wanted to wonder if the compass could also aid him in the direction of his friends, he dare not ponder it for too long in fear that his heart's desire might change the direction of the needle.

Sora stretched his arms out and fell back yawning. "I'm boreeeeeeed."

Almost as if the sea itself had heard his cry and had decided to assuage his boredom, a mermaid leapt out of the water and blocked out Sora's view of the sun. He found himself getting slightly wet as she soared over him and then landed back in the water on the other side of the boat.

Sora kicked upwards and landing on his feet with grin. Running over the boat's railing, he looked over to see the mermaid kicking her fin about as she somersaulted through the air and landed back once again in the water.

"Wow! I gotta tell Luna about this. GUYS, COME HERE!" Sora called as loudly as he could. A few seconds later, Luna emerged from the cabin followed by Balthier and Fran to check out the commotion.

"Sora, what's going on?" Luna asked, looking around wearily for signs of danger.

"No, it's nothing like that. Come over here and see!" Sora pointed down to the water. Luna walked to his side and peered over, however the mermaid had completely disappeared into the water.

"Uh, I'm not seeing anything," Luna said after a short while.

"Aw, she's gone! Well, you wouldn't believe- AH!"

Sora was cut off as the mermaid rose out of the sparkling blue water once again in remarkable fashion, this time bringing another with her. Luna stared gawking as the mermaids pulled off numerous tricks as they sought to keep up with the boat.

"Now that's certainly a sight to behold," Balthier commented.

"I can't believe it! I'm looking at real mermaids. REAL MERMAIDS! Oh, I can die happy now," Luna squealed as she and Sora moved along with the mermaids, following them all the way to the front.

"Oh. I have an idea!" Sora said. He summoned the Kingdom Key and gently waved it about, transitioning between left and right movements like the lapping of waves. Water rose up from the sea and began to dance around in sync with Sora's movements. Luna grinned at this and summoned Dream Seeker before following along. As the water spit out from the sea like a fountain and danced around, the mermaids smiled and jumped, catching the water with their fins and sending it back into the sea along with them.

"You don't happen to know Ariel do you?" Sora yelled after lowering his Keyblade, hoping they could hear him. The one on the right settled down in the water and looked up at him.

"King Triton's daughter? You've met her?" she asked.

"I have. Are we nearby?" Sora asked.

The mermaid shook her head. "We mermaids don't all live in the same place, you know."

"Oh, sorry. But if you do see King Triton or Ariel, tell them Sora said hello and that he'll come and visit sometime soon," Sora said. He truly hoped it was at least better down where it was wetter than it was on land right now.

The first mermaid Sora had seen popped out of the water and was quickly relayed Sora's words by her friend. She looked up at him and smiled. "We'll let them know."

"Haha, thank you!" Sora waved at them as they took off. Just as they had thought they had seen the last of the mermaids, the second one popped up again.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Just in case you don't know there's a cave nearby if you want to get to the other side. The cave's full of these creatures called Nereid. While they aren't particularly harmful to women, men are a whole other story. Just make sure you watch out for their gazes," she advised.

"Do you know what's on the other side of the cave?" Balthier asked.

"A small town by the name of Gravity Falls. It's… well, I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise. Do be careful around some of the folk though. They aren't exactly what you would call… normal," the mermaid replied.

"I like surprises. And Luna's not exactly what you call normal either so I'm sure she'll fit right in," Sora said.

"Hey!" Luna exclaimed at him. She looked back at the mermaid and smiled. "Thanks for the tip. We'll be on the lookout."

With a final smile, the mermaid was off again, this time for good. Luna stretched her arms and beamed. "I wish I could have a tail. Sora, you're taking me to Atlantica one of these days. We are going to bring a whole new meaning to the phrase 'swimming with the fishes'."

"I am both excited and very scared to find out what that means," Sora said. He jumped onto the railing, using his arms to keep his feet off the ground. As the mermaid had told them, he could make out a littoral cave in the distance as their ship sailed farther into the lagoon.

* * *

 **A/N: So we'll be going into Disney cartoons next time. Stay tuned for Gravity Falls as well as more on Astra's journey and what she's been doing this entire time.**


	25. The Dragon of Millhaven

**A/N: Fun fact: The place for the Gnome's village in this chapter was originally called Gnoman's Land. I then had flashbacks of No Man's Sky. I promptly decided against it. Now, on with the story.**

* * *

Chapter 24

The Dragon of Millhaven

 ** _Millhaven Forest_**

Astra's footsteps made imprints on the muddy ground as she trudged up the hill. Rain had just finished falling and if she weren't careful she would most definitely slip. In fact, she had already done so twice.

Soon she reached level land once again and summoned her Midnight Mauve Keyblade, quickly dodging behind a tree. She pressed her left hand against the bark and leaned slightly to her right so she could see the two figures ahead, both equipped with Keyblades.

"I'm starting to hate this place. Can't go a day without encountering these stupid things," said the wielder with the Fatal Crest Keyblade.

"It's not like we can complain. I hear other Keyblade wielders in other parts of the world are being attacked by them as well. We're not exactly a special case. We were at least welcomed by the people here. Most other people want nothing to do with us and it's probably not too hard to understand why," replied the other wielder with the Maverick Flare Keyblade.

"We protect them. This world would have long since been swallowed by darkness if we hadn't worked to keep the light safe," said the first boy.

"Well, it's not like they know that. Hey, you ever think that the way we keep the world safe is almost like balancing out an equation? You can't have too much light or darkness, otherwise one just consumes the other. It's why we'd have to put down the light where there's too much of it," said the second. As they got farther and farther away, their voices became less discernible, but Astra was determined to keep up. Perhaps if she could follow them back to their base she could take the entire group out.

"-I'm scared," she heard the Maverick Flare wielder say as she neared them again.

"Please, you're always scared," replied the first wielder as they continued deeper into the forest.

"You know what I mean, wise guy. Why are we here? Last time I checked we were in a massive battle, Keyblade wielder being pitted against Keyblade wielder. They were just like us, flesh and blood, but because they were in a different faction they were also different. Everyone believes different things but that doesn't stop us from shedding the same color of blood. I guess… I guess I just don't want this to be my life is all. We've been giving a second chance, otherwise we wouldn't be here. Maybe that's a sign, that there's something else out there for us. If protecting the world means you have to hurt people to do it, I don't want to be a part of it. There has to be another way, you know?"

The boy next to him gritted his teeth and spun around on the boy, grabbing his collar and lifting him into the air. The second boy was so surprised that his grip on Maverick Flare loosened and the Keyblade dropped to the ground.

"You don't think there aren't others like you who think that way? If there was one, we would have found it already!" the first boy yelled with a snarl. He breathed in and out for a moment and then let go of his companion. "Sorry. It's just that I've been hearing that for a while now. From you, my sister, a lot of people. Life isn't always without sacrifice. I could imagine a thousand ways my life would have been different if I hadn't gotten the Keyblade. But I did, and there's no running from that, because to do so now would be an insult to everything I've fought for so far. All I know is that at the end of this path, Horus will set my heart free and make it fly. Everything we do now is for a world free from burden."

Astra let out a sigh and looked down at her own Keyblade. If she had never received hers, she most likely would still be on Alexander. She wondered how her home was doing at the moment. Was it in a state of disarray much like some of the other places she had been to?

As much as that might have been the case, she could not imagine it compared to the lost lives of those who had been swept up by the sea in Thebes. She had managed to save two children and brought them into the safety of a famous hero nearby who she had met on her travels. The children, Matthias and Chyrssa, seemed quite elated at the prospect of personally meeting the mighty Hercules, which in turn made Astra happy. If it distracted them from the horrors of the real world, even for a moment, then it was a step in the right direction.

Astra looked back at the two Keyblade wielders when she heard the sound of low growl. At least the second boy had heard it as well and was looking around.

"Quit with the noises, dude. You're scaring me," he said.

"There you go again being a baby. Besides, I didn't make that noise. I thought you were hungry," said the first boy.

"Do you even know what sound a stomach makes when it growls?" asked the second incredulously. They both stopped in their tracks and slowly looked behind them. Astra quickly hid herself fully behind the tree. Had they picked up on her following them somehow?

She readied her Keyblade in case she had to use it at a moment's notice, but she instead heard screams fill the air. She was about to look around to see but immediately hugged the tree bark as the two wielders ran past her back the way they had come. Astra chuckled as they slipped and slid across the muddy path until they were out of sight. She soon stopped however. Just what had spooked two (probably) fully trained Keyblade wielders so much that they had to run off like that?

She stepped away from her hiding place and walked towards where they had once stood. She surveyed her surrounding area for the moment before looking down at the ground. A few branches seemed to be lying about a few metres from where she had been standing. Whatever had disturbed them certainly wasn't human sized as to leave such a big mess.

"Anyone there?" Astra called out. Silence. Maybe the two had scared whatever it was off. Astra shook her head before continuing on through the forest. If she didn't meet it that could only be a good thing, she figured.

* * *

 ** _The Crystal Cave_ , _Gravity Falls_**

Sora let out a laugh as he heard the cave echo the sounds of their voices. The walls of the cave were made of gold quartz crystals through which Sora could see his reflection. He turned to Fran and grinned. "Now this is something, right?"

"Stay focused. Or doth the mermaid's words fall on deaf ears?" Fran reminded him.

"We'll be alright. I'm not about to fall for any old trick that someone throws at me. Just don't look in the water. Easy," Sora assured her confidently.

Fran gave a soft chuckle before looking back at the quartz crystals. "There were often tales in my village of crystals that could imbue the user with spiritual energy. The stories went that they were once the possession of powerful kings who transmuted some of their own power onto the crystal, and in return they were passed down through the generations to be used in times of need."

"Wow, they sound like some mighty powerful crystals," Sora said.

"Well, it is a tale. Not something to be taken so seriously, though I suppose it is true that there is some truth in fiction," Fran said. "Though I doubt these quartz crystals in particular hold any sort of power. I can't sense any coming from them anyway."

"Well, I can dream," Sora said. He had spent enough time on The Shiva to learn a bit more about Fran's heightened senses due to Viera evolving into natural hunters over the years and after explaining their predicament with the heart pieces, she seemed quite confident that if she were to be around one part of Kingdom Hearts, she would be able to tell when she was near the other parts through their similar signature.

"Fran, can I talk to you about something?" Balthier called for near the front of The Shiva. Fran quickly excused herself and went over to him, leaving Sora to look at his own reflection and the golden crystals which allowed that to be the case.

Even if Fran was sure that the crystals didn't have any power, Sora was pretty sure that there was more to this place than it seemed. He wasn't an expert on caves but he was pretty sure erosion by waves and structural weakness within the rocks themselves was a big factor for forming sea caves. He ought to know that because he had grown up on a world surrounded entirely by ocean. The problem was that he questioned how weak these quartz crystals really were that the battering waves could erode the rock around them. Either the cave was not naturally made or the quartz crystals had been put there after the fact. Most importantly, Sora wasn't really sure why it was bothering him so much. He could really just as easily chalk it up to magic.

He saw something behind his reflection. A pair of eyes staring at him, kind and gentle and feminine.

"Oh… no…" Sora tried to turn his head, but it landed back in place like a magnet. He couldn't take his eyes away from her beautiful gaze. He tried moving his head again but his eyes weren't following along. A woman rose up from the sea to greet him and he looked down, or his head looked down. Whatever was looking down most certainly wasn't within his control.

The woman flipped her emerald green hair to the side and held out her hand to him. Sora's eyes glossed over and he slowly reached forward for her. For some reason, he couldn't understand why, he needed her. He needed the comfort and love she would surely provide. All other thoughts had disappeared from his mind and although he was sure there was a certain person he should be thinking of, her name escaped him. He felt himself tipping over the railing more and more until finally, he was overboard. It felt great to join her in the water, and even better as she took his head and led him deeper into the water's depths.

Meanwhile at the front of the boat, Fran's ears quickly picked up on the splash induced by Sora falling in and left Luna and Balthier's side with haste. Luna and Balthier followed her and soon arrived at the spot.

"Where's Sora?" Luna asked.

"I heard a splash. He must have fallen in," Fran explained.

"No! You don't think he saw a Nereid, do you? But he should have known not to look at it," Luna cried.

"No, I should have known. You can see your reflection in the quartz crystals. He didn't need to look directly at it to become bewitched by it. It seems a virtual image is good enough," Fran said.

"Less talking, more saving. Don't worry, Luna, I can handle this," Balthier said as he prepared to jump in.

"Wait, Balthier! You can't. What if it gets you too?" Luna reasoned. She looked down at the water and said, "That just leaves us girls. Fran's bow won't work well underwater so I guess it's up to me."

"Luna, be careful," Fran told her. Luna smiled at her before climbing over the railing and dropping in. As with conquering any fear, the best thing to do was dive right in without thinking. This was both a good thing and a bad thing. The good thing was that she was now in the water and therefore could only keep going from here on out. The bad thing was that when she started thinking, which was inevitable because of past experiences, she began to panic.

She remembered herself falling into a lake whilst trying to catch a fish with her father, falling into Radiant Garden's lake after being taken over by her Chimera and falling into Metropolis' river once again during the battle against the Omnidroid. In all three of those cases, someone had been there to save her. This time, she needed to be the savior.

She summoned her Keyblade upon seeing Sora and the Nereid in the distance. She wasn't particularly good at holding her breath underwater so she needed to act fast. Aiming her Keyblade, she cast a warning near them in the form of a jet of fire. The Nereid glared at her with eyes glowing icy blue. Leaving Sora's side, the Nereid shot forwards to attack Luna. Luna leaned to her left, dodging the first swing from the creature. Luna then swung forward, hitting the Nereid and causing a light to erupt from her Keyblade that repelled the creature away.

The Nereid suddenly let out a wail, calling in her friends. They swarmed the water in every direction in an attempt to confuse Luna. One of them soon lunged forward with a trident in her hands but Luna parried the blow with her Keyblade, being pushed back as Nereid flew past her. Luna looked down to where Sora was before focusing on charging her Keyblade. Before more Nereid could lunge at her she quickly unleashed Holy. A giant ball of light expanded from the tip of her Keyblade and formed a giant dome around her, knocking back all of the Nereid. The Nereid swam off in fear but Luna's focus was concentrated entirely on rescuing Sora.

She reached out for him and after a few attempts finally managed to grasp his wrist. It only struck her once she had reached him how hard it would be to carry the both of them back up to the surface.

 _Think, Luna, think…_ Luna closed her eyes and cycles through her list of options. Before anything concrete could come to her however, she felt a hand grab her left hand, dragging her and by extension Sora upwards. Luna looked up but before she could make out their rescuer, she and Sora hit the surface. She looked around quickly, but all she could make out were the agitated faces of Fran and Balthier from the ship.

"Fran, help them in!" Balthier ordered. Fran opened up the ship door and helped Luna and Sora into the ship, with Balthier providing them with blankets immediately upon their arriving on board.

Sora's eyes fluttered open and he coughed out some of the water in his mouth before looking at the others. "What… happened?"

"Why you fell into the lake of course. These Nereid are dangerous business and I can say that as someone who's dealt with a lot of shady business before," Balthier said. "Fortunately, Fran picked up on the splash before either myself or Luna could. Since Luna was the only one of us who could do anything, she dived in to save you. Aren't you lucky to have two lovely ladies in your life?"

"Luna, thank you," Sora said, pulling her into a hug. He soon let go and gave a shaky laugh. "Boy, you're shivering cold. So am I, I guess. Thanks as well, Fran."

"Well at least we can be shiver buddies together!" Luna said just as shakily.

"Is that a thing? I don't think that's quite a thing," Sora said.

"It's totally a thing. If not, I just made it one," Luna said lightly tapping her nose.

"Right then. I've about had enough of this place as beautiful as it is. You two get going into the cabin and Fran and I will focus our efforts on getting us out of this place," Balthier told them. He walked off leaving Fran with them. She walked up to Luna and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"You were incredibly brave to do what you did. It's an act of courage I won't soon forget," Fran said. As she walked away, Luna looked at Sora with a furrowed brow.

"I mean, I did jump in but… I know I didn't get us both out. I couldn't carry the both of us. Something or someone helped us. Or at least, that's what it felt like," Luna said. But to her the sensation that had guided them upwards had been familiar. In a way, it had almost felt like her mother's. But that didn't make any sense… did it?

* * *

Sora had briefly imagined what it would be like as a sailor who had set out at sea for an indefinite period of time, only to step foot on land after a long absence. The first feeling he would feel would be relief, much like Sora felt at this very moment. The cramped confines of _The Sheva_ had done its toll and now more than ever, Sora was ready to stretch his legs and see new sights.

What greeted them this time were Douglas fir trees covering acres upon acres of land. If they looked to the right they could make out a water tower in the distance with a cupcake drawn on it using red paint.

"So this is Gravity Falls. A pretty weird name for a town, but if this is what it is it's my kind of town. I wanted to go hiking with my parents as well up the Alexandrian mountains but a family who lived a few blocks from us, the Toddfields, asked for the day off before my dad could book it. In the end, I never got the chance to hike with them," Luna said, looking to the tops of the trees.

"We can go some time then. We can even bring Stephanie and Colette along," Sora said.

"Yes, they'd love that. Oh, and Neuge as well. She doesn't particularly look the type that would go hiking which would make it all the more hilarious if we brought her," Luna added.

"Profiting of the misfortune of others, I see. Leave poor Neuge alone. What if I brought you along for sky diving knowing you have a fear of heights? It's not so funny now, is it?" Sora pointed out, smiling at Luna's glum expression. Suddenly, the Kingdom Key appeared in Sora's hands and sent him almost toppling forward as it glowed and pointed dead straight.

"Hmm, someone's getting a little excited," Balthier jested only to be nudged in the ribs by Fran.

"Another piece of heart?" Luna asked.

Sora grinned and lowered his Keyblade. "The game is afoot."

With the assurances from Balthier that it was alright to leave _The Sheva_ where it was, the group set off into the forest with their aim being the water tower where they imagined the actual town must be. As they walked deeper into the forest, Fran looked around cautiously. Balthier was the first to pick this up.

"Do you sense something, Fran?" Balthier asked.

"This forest has a mysterious aura surrounding it. I'm not quite sure what it is, but I would advise caution for the time bei-"

"OOH!" Luna made a sound as she tripped over something and fell to the ground.

"Luna, are you alright, kupo?" Kupopo asked as Sora moved quickly to help her up.

"I think so… what did I even trip o- oh dear!" Luna stepped back quickly as she saw a tiny human lying on its side where she had previously been. "Is that a gnome?"

"A gnome? That's what they're called?" Sora asked, looking down at the tiny bearded man with a pointed red hat.

"Yeah, there are these things you can buy back in Alexander called Garden Gnomes. They make for lovely decorations in your garden," Luna said.

"You… you buy us?" the gnome screamed.

"Er, wait, let me rephrase that," Luna started.

"And use us as decorations?"

"They're made of plastic," Luna answered in a tiny voice.

"Nice rephrasing there," Balthier said.

"Uh, guys…?" Sora cut in, looking around. Gnomes began popping out from their hiding places: bushes, behind rocks, even out from the trees. "Luna, if you want to re-rephrase that, now would be the time."

One of the gnomes who had been hiding behind a bush stepped forward and proclaimed, "I am Jeff, the leader of the Gnomes of Gravity Falls, and the one who the tiny girl tripped over is Schmebulock. Don't worry too much about him. He only knows one word—his name. Who would you three be?"

"I'm Sora and this is Luna, Balthier, Fran and Kupopo. We come in peace," Sora promised with his hands held up. "So we'll just be on our way now…"

"Oh, what's the hurry? Please, do join us for the evening. You wouldn't want to be caught in the rain, thunder and lightning now, would you?"

"Huh, but it doesn't look like it's going to rain," Sora said. As if on cue, a loud thunderous boom seemed to split the tranquillity of the sky. Sora felt Luna's hands suddenly grab his hand with both of her own, something that Sora was secretly happy about but tried not to wear said emotion on his sleeve. Not long after, clouds appeared and it soon started raining.

"Spoke too soon, kupo," Kupopo said wistfully.

"I guess we don't have much of a choice then. Lead the way," Sora said, pulling his hood up.

* * *

 ** _Millhaven Forest_**

Astra was beginning to get annoyed. As she kept moving, she could most certainly tell that she wasn't alone. Something had been following her ever since the incident with the two Keyblade wielders. At first, she kept looking behind her every time she felt the presence but found nothing. Eventually however, she simply stopped caring and continued on. It was clear that whatever it was that was following her wasn't a threat. The creatures she had been fighting recently as well as the Heartless would act in such a way that they would attack her the moment they saw that she was alone. No, it seemed this presence was following her more out of curiosity than hostile intentions.

Still knowing that, if it was planning to follow her all the way, that bugged her. She would need to get rid of it quick, or at least find a way to get it to reveal itself.

Astra sat down against a tree and unloaded her backpack. Bringing one along with her had made her feel like a kid again, going on a school trip to the nature reserve in Alexander. That had before she and Luna had become friends and while Luna had also been on that trip, Astra had rarely ever paid close attention to her but when she did she would find that Luna was often sticking close to her teacher and not with the rest of her classmates. The next time Astra went to that reserve was of her own volition and mainly because she wanted to surprise Luna by bringing her along with.

Astra rummaged through her backpack until she found what she was looking for, a cheese and cucumber sandwich. She took a bite from it and then looked up before deliberately holding her sandwich out.

"Oh dear, this sandwich is just so delicious but I'm stuffed. I just can't eat another bite. If only there was someone else who could eat it instead!" Astra groaned out. It was always good to know how acting skills were up to scratch. Well, if she was going to go this far with the ham, she might as well go all out. "I think I'm just going to set this sandwich down on the grass and close my eyes for a while. I feel pretty," here she yawned and put the sandwich down on the grass. "Sleepy. Why, if someone were to take this sandwich that is currently resting next to me while I'm taking this nap, I don't know what I'd do!"

Astra stretched out her arms and legs and cozied up against the tree before letting her eyelids drop.

After a few seconds, Astra suddenly felt a sudden wind blowing near her. She slowly opened her left eye and looked to the side. Something very green and very furry was next to her. She opened both eyes and looked over at the creature.

"You're kidding me…" Astra whispered. The dragon looked back at her and their eyes met. Eventually, the dragon broke contact and threw the sandwich that was sticking out of his mouth up into the air. The sandwich spun before falling back into the dragon's mouth. Astra sighed and stood up, slinging her backpack over her shoulder.

"Glad you enjoyed it, so if you could stop following me now, that would be great," Astra said. She set off and not a few seconds later had to stop and look back. The dragon was still right behind her. She spun around and pointed behind him.

"Not this way. The other way!" Astra ordered. She turned around and was about to move again, only to stop and look back. More staring. And then the dragon smiled, showing its big teeth to her.

"Okay, you and I? It's just not gonna work out! It's not you, it's me and- okay, well it kind of is you but I'm also just the lone wolf type and I can't have a dragon breathing down my back every step I take. Look, I have to go find my friends and I'm not even sure why I'm talking to you, I mean can you even understand a thing I'm saying?" Astra asked. The dragon fell on its side and began rolling left and right. It was this behavior that caused her to hesitate, having been reminded of her late tabby cat, Sky.

"Okay, I'll bite," Astra said. She walked over to the dragon and slowly lifted her hand. She started running her hands up and down the dragon's fur, alternating between fast and slow. Her hand froze in place when the dragon's fur glowed a bright shade of green. It suddenly occurred to Astra that she was not petting a cat, but in fact, a dragon—a dragon that could probably fly and breathe fire. That's what she had always imagined dragons to be like anyway if they ever were to exist, and her being here with one now confirmed that the legends were actually real.

"I guess the glow means you're happy. That's good. Does that mean I can leave now?" Astra asked as she resumed scratching his fur. "Have you been living here by yourself all this time? Don't you have family?"

The dragon let out a low groan and hung its head low. So it did understand her, or so she assumed from its reaction.

"Well I don't speak dragon but I guess you either don't or you're quite far away from them. Well, hope you find them. Seriously, can I go now?"

She was about to turn again when she felt something pierce her neck. She let out a gasp that was drowned out by the rather loud roar of the dragon next to her. She reached for her neck and grabbed hold of the thing in her neck. Pulling it out, she looked down to see a syringe with a hypodermic needle on one end and a tuft of fibrous stands that looked like hair on the other side. Suddenly she began to feel drowsy and fell on her side. Though her head felt heavy she forced herself to look up into the eyes of her attacker.

The man, who was dressed like a ringmaster, walked up to her and moved the cigar in his hand to his mouth, letting it rest in his mouth. "Looks like we've bagged ourselves a bonus. You know, tranquilizer darts really aren't supposed to be used on humans, what with possible side effects and all, but I guess there's always a first. Can't be too careful these days."

Astra tried to speak back but the words weren't coming out of her mouth. Instead, she had started drooling. The Ringmaster turned to the dragon now who was lying on his side, unmoving. Astra could see several darts sticking out from his fur.

"Now this… this is the real prize. I've been trying to get my new circus afloat for a while now after those brats ruined and took the old one away from me. People will come far and wide just to see this new attraction. No animatronics here. No, no, no, only the real thing. Don't worry. You'll fit in just fine where you're going," The Ringmaster leaned in to look at the dragon's face. The dragon suddenly let out a sharp growl, causing the Ringmaster to let out a shrill cry and jump back.

"What do we do with the girl?" Astra heard someone else say. This person was outside of her failing eyesight.

"Give her to those people. Unless she can make me munny, I have no need for her…"

Against screaming at every part of her body to move, Astra was forced to wait for sleep to overtake her as she felt a pair of hands move around her waist and lift her up.

* * *

 ** _The Gnominal Abode, Gravity Falls_**

When Sora and the others reached the village hamlet that belonged to the gnomes, they were surprised to find out just how big it actually was. It had seemed they had built their own little community, shy from the eyes of the outside world, and were doing quite comfortable for themselves. Small huts were built around the settlement dedicated to supporting the gnomes, be they homes, bartering shops, blacksmiths or tailors.

"You've got yourself a quaint little town here," Luna said. "Is it just gnomes that live here?"

"We don't usually tend to associate with humans for reasons of secrecy and the preservation of our species. Could you imagine if everyone knew everyone in Gravity Falls?" Jeff asked.

"Not really. Then again, I'm not from around here," Luna replied, playing with a lock of her hair.

"I mean just think about it. Cats and dogs living together?! Mass hysteria? No? Don't know the line? Hmm, thought that one was popular among your lot," Jeff said before continuing on his way. "The point is we act quite well on our own. We even have our own queen who assigns tasks for we gnomes to carry out."

"Ooh, a queen! I bet she's a sight for sore eyes, eh? Can we see her?" Luna asked.

"Err, no, right now the queen is… disposed at the moment," Jeff answered.

"You mean indisposed," Sora corrected. Jeff blinked a few times before a gnome walked over to him and whispered something into his ear. The gnome soon left his side and Jeff looked back to them.

"Yes. That one," he replied in a nonchalant manner.

"That's a shame. I hope she gets better soon," Luna said.

"Feel free to use the huts to your left. They might not necessarily be comfortable, but they do provide shelter from the rain," Jeff said. "We'll talk again in the morning."

"Alright. Thank you, Jeff," Luna said, before rushing over to the huts in an effort to escape the pelting rain. Sora also bid his goodnights to the group of gnomes before he, Fran, Balthier and Kupopo joined Luan by the huts. The tiny houses seemed proportional to the size of Sora which meant that Balthier and Fran would probably be doing a lot of squeezing and tucking to accommodate their taller bodies.

"Better than nothing I'd say," Balthier shouted over the rain. "We'll make do. Just be careful tonight. I'm not Fran but even I can tell something feels off."

"Really? They seem like a nice bunch to me," Sora said.

"And this is why you should be so glad you're not travelling on your own," Balthier replied.

"Hey, that was rude!" Sora called out.

"It's a Balthier thing. Good night, Sora," Fran said. Sora nodded before heading into his own little hut. The sound of thunder outside would likely see him staying up for quite a while, so he hoped it died down soon.

As the night drew on however, and though the storm outside had long since quelled, not everyone in the Gnominal Abode had taken advantage of this peace to get some sleep. Luna sat up and rubbed her eyes. She stepped out of the hut and looked up at the full moon, its light radiating a gentle and soft blue. For whatever reason, she couldn't stop thinking about the strange sensation that had saved her and Sora earlier that day. Upon thinking about it more, it wasn't quite right to say that it felt exactly like her mother's, but motherly in nature. She supposed it only made sense for her to mistake it for her mother instead, given the confusion at the time.

Still, as Luna looked up to the moon right now, she couldn't help but long for her parents' touch. "I wish you were here. Even just seeing your faces once in a while would be enough. I know that as long as you're in my heart, you'll exist by my side but existing isn't enough. There are so many things I wish I could have said. That I regret. No matter how much I try to dedicate myself to you both, I fear that this guilt might stay with me for the rest of my life."

 _SMASH!_

Luna spun around at the sound of something like pottery breaking. The sound had come from the shack situated near the edge of the forest, the first she had noticed it. She rushed over towards it and tried to pull open the door only to find it locked.

"Hmph, not from me you're not," Luna said, summoning Dream Seeker. She unlocked the door and stepped into the dark room, leaving the door slightly open. There wasn't any light in the shack, and no windows with which moonlight could parse its darkness, but all the same Luna was able to make out a figure in the back. A human girl.

"MMmmmm, MMMMmmmm!" the girl called, her voice muffled by a piece duct tape patched to her mouth.

"It's okay. It's okay. Shh, I'll get you out," Luna said. She quickly lit up her Keyblade and examined the surrounding area. Immediately she discovered the source of the crash, being what used to be a vase, was now many small fragments on the floor. The girl had probably kicked it in her thrashing. Speaking of, the girl in question was currently bound by thick ropes that easily wrapped around her small frame. Luna found the switch for the room and flicked it on bringing light from the bulb above. She then reached out and held up an index finger as a warning, before ripping the duct tape off.

"Ow! That hurt. Think you could have done that any more painfully?" the girl asked in a snooty manner.

"I'm sorry. It was that or-"

"Actually, I don't really want to hear your excuses. Just take these ropes off me already. Dad is seriously going to hear about this and when he does, he'll do the thing we rich people do best. Sue," the girl said.

"Do I have to put the tape back on? Cause I'll put the tape back on if I have to," Luna snapped.

This girl was starting to remind her of two girls who had taken pleasure in bullying her back in her school days, Tabitha and Momo, at least before Astra asked them to stop. Even when they had begun ignoring her, Luna couldn't stop hating them. Tabitha particularly had been so conceited, believing herself to be invincible behind the veil that was her parents' wealth, and Momo who desperately wanted a bit of the spotlight saw fit to jump right in like an obedient pup. If this girl were like any of those two then Luna would be glad to see the back of her as soon as she helped her escape.

"Now, now, let's not be too hasty. I'll be quiet. Just help me and the Northwest family will give you whatever you want," said the girl.

"And why would you have anything that I need? You can keep your riches," Luna said abrasively. She knew deep down it wasn't right to lash out against someone she had only just met, rich or not, but she couldn't help but see Tabitha when she saw this girl. She shook the feeling off and cut through the ropes.

"Thanks for your help. I'm Pacifica," the girl said.

"Luna, but what are you doing all the way out here?" Luna asked.

"Those stupid gnomes up and kidnapped me out of nowhere. Then they started spouting some gibberish about wanting me to be their new queen," Pacifica said.

"And you said no so they locked you up here?" Luna said. She simply couldn't believe those cute, tiny gnomes could be responsible for committing such a horrible deed as kidnapping.

"Er, actually no. I accepted," Pacifica said, looking a bit uncomfortable.

"You said yes?!"

"Well, I mean, if you got the chance to rule over a bunch of gnomes and make them do whatever you wanted them to do, you'd say yes too," Pacifica replied.

"No. No, I wouldn't," Luna said.

"Well, any normal person anyway. But it turns out that ruling a colony isn't all it's cracked up to be. I can't even step one foot outside this place to go to town or see my parents. Turns out having too much power is having less power. Makes sense, huh?"

"I can't say since I'm _not normal_ , but I imagine that just because you have power, it doesn't make you automatically exempt from the responsibilities that come with that power," Luna said. "Anyway, we should get you back home. Is it nearby?"

"Kind of. You can see it on the hill from here," Pacifica said.

"Right, but first I have to warn my friends-" Luna blinked several times in the darkness. A darkness that had come as soon as the light in the room had gone out. It was only when a secondary source of light appeared, that Luna and Pacifica found themselves looking down at a third person in the room.

"You aren't supposed to be here," Jeff said. He was holding a lit candle in his hand, one which he blew on, or at least, attempted to blow on but the flame wouldn't go out. "Darn it! Why do these things never work when they're supposed to?"

* * *

 **A/N: So what exactly happened to Astra and the dragon (Pete's Dragon is a nice, fun family movie btw. Be sure to check it out) and what about the fates of Luna and Pacifica? Find out next time on Paved With Gold.**


	26. The Deserters

**A/N: Why so many good games this year? Between balancing things about between Yakuza 0 and Nier: Automata I also still have yet to play Horizon as well as Zelda and Mass Effect's coming out soon and- *system malfunction detected*. Anyway, time for Paved With Gold and as always, like, review and favorite if you want to keep up to date with this or Through Smoke and Flames. Thanks again!**

* * *

Chapter 25

The Deserters

Luna took a step back as she eyed the candle in Jeff's hand before she had an idea, an opportunity that could only work if the gnome was stupid enough to fall for it. No matter how silly it seemed, what did she have to lose by trying it?

"Want me to help you out with that?" Luna asked, nodding at the candle as Jeff tried profusely to blow it out.

"Oh, thank you!" Jeff said, holding the candle out for her. Luna smiled and pointed her Keyblade at the candle, casting fire. The flame didn't come out of the tip of her Keyblade but rather from the candle's flame itself, its small flicker of light suddenly bursting to life becoming stupendously large if just for the short moment. That moment was enough for Jeff to drop the candle and jump away in a panic.

"Let's go Pacifica!" Luna yelled behind her as she made a run for outside the shack.

"Yeeaaaaahhhh…" was all the stunned Pacifica could say. She seemed to be rooted on the spot, leaving Luna no choice but to drag her out.

Setting her sights on the tents, Luna brandished her Keyblade and slashed through the air horizontally, sending forth a gust of wind that blew the hostile gnomes off course. By this point, quite the commotion had been stirred and fortunately enough to wake Sora and the others from their tents without Luna having to reach them. Sora rubbed his eyes, blinked for a few seconds before a look of confusion finally fell on his face.

"What in the world is-"

"No time to explain, gotta go!" Luna yelled as she and Pacifica ran past him. Sora turned his head in the direction of the armada of gnomes and back to Luna before jolting back to the gnomes, eventually registering what was going on.

"Luna… what did you do?" Sora yelled as he, Balthier, Fran and Kupopo took off in pursuit.

"Nothing if by which you mean happening to be in the wrong place at the wrong time," Luna screamed back at him as she continued running.

"The story of your life," Sora remarked. His movements ground to a halt and he summoned his Keyblade, charging it up before unleashing a flash of light at the gnomes. The tiny creatures stumbled about, yelling "Ow!" and "Can't see!" and "Schmebulock!", though the last one seemed to come from only one of them. With a satisfied smirk, Sora turned and rejoined the others outside the perimeter of the camp.

"That should keep 'em busy," he said, looking back every now and then.

"We should head to the town. I doubt they'll follow us all the way, especially when they value the secrecy of their existence," Fran advised. Deciding to take Fran's word for it (because she had a habit of usually being right), the group set off into the trees once more in the direction of the water tower.

"Give us back our queen! We can't follow her orders if she's not there to give us any!" they could hear from behind them.

"Ew! Get away from me, you freaks! Who'd want to be queen of you?" Pacifica yelled. There seemed to be some hesitation following her question as an audible "Er…" escaped her mouth. Sora turned back quickly to see five gnomes stacked on top of each other chasing after them.

"You gasp now! Witness the awesome power of… NORMAN!" Jeff yelled from on top.

"You have got to be kidding me. This is straight out of an episode of Powersuit Rescuers Flightforce!" Sora yelled.

"Fran, I don't think they're stopping," Luna doubted. Through what was silent agreement, Sora pivoted until he was facing the gnomes. He cut through the air, using the coldness in the air to cast Blizzaja. A fractal of ice formed right in front of 'Norman', too late for the group of gnomes to slow down or divert their current course. As they came in contact with the fractal, the ice suddenly expanded and blew up, knocking them out of formation like bowling pins.

"I should have done that a long time ago," Sora said, smiling at the group as they continued on into the forest. It was not too long until the group encountered their next surprise. As they occasionally checked behind them to make sure they were a comfortable distance from their pursuers, they failed to notice in time two people who were running towards them. As Sora looked away from his shoulder to pay attention to what was in front of him, he met face to face with brown eyes before smashing foreheads into him and dropping to the floor. Likewise, Luna met face to face with a girl with honey brown eyes, but unlike the other two, they both quickly held out their hands to grab the other girl before they could run into each other.

"Sorry," Luna and the girl both uttered at the same time. They retracted their hands just as they heard a screech from above.

"Get down!" the girl yelled as a key-shaped weapon appeared in her hands. Luna barely had time to react before the girl wrapped her arm around Luna's neck and pulled her down along with her just as a Pterodactyl-like creature swooped down from above and almost took her head clean off.

Jeff, who had since reassembled into Norman and had been following the group, gawked as the Pterodactyl flew towards them. He looked down at the gnomes supporting him and said with a tear in his eye, "Gentlemen, it's been an honor."

"The honor was ours," the bottom left foot said.

"That it- wait… Schmebulock? You can-" was all Jeff managed to say before he grabbed and lifted into the sky by the Pterodactyl.

Ahead of the perturbed gnomes, the girl who had pulled Luna down placed a hand on her shoulder and asked if she were okay. Luna nodded and slowly stood up, examining the girl as she did so. She was slightly taller than Luna with dark hair but was not dissimilar in her girlish physique or round face.

"You're a Keyblade wielder?" Luna asked. She looked towards the other boy before correcting herself. "You're BOTH Keyblade wielders?"

"And you would be Sora and Luna, right? There's not a person in Horus who hasn't heard of you two. You're like legends!" the boy said. He had short unruly black hair and was probably about as tall as Riku.

"Horus?" The word triggered all sorts of alarms in Sora's mind and he quickly summoned his Keyblade, pointing it at the boy.

"Woah, woah! Chill out, man. We're not here on orders from them," the boy said quickly.

"Quite the opposite actually. We're on the run from them," the girl added.

"On the run, you say?" Balthier asked with an inquisitive glance and scratch of his chin.

The boy nodded. "We had to flee from him. We had no choice."

"Who?" Sora asked, but another screech from above cut off his reply.

"No, no, we can't stay here. That creature is coming back for us. We need to keep moving, Aya," the boy said to his companion.

The girl he called Aya nodded before looking at the group. "I can understand if you don't trust us, but nevertheless we don't mean you any harm. If you're willing to give us a chance, we'll explain everything."

Sora and Luna exchanged looks as if wanting to consult the other for guidance, but upon realizing that neither of them had answers, they both came to a similar conclusion. Horus was their enemy, that wasn't in question, but they couldn't possibly hope to get anywhere by pushing help away just because of where it came from.

It was with some consternation that they decided to follow Aya and her friend along, though it soon became clear that the two deserters had no idea where they were going. Soon however, they came across a shack at a clearing in the forest. The clearing was connected to a path that could probably take them to the town, but going back to the shack, there was an aura of mystery surrounding the lonesome building.

"Mystery Hack?" Aya read the sign on the right side of the roof. "Heh, that's a weird name."

"I think it means Mystery Shack," Luna corrected, pointing to the front door where the 'S' was painted along with the rest of the letters. Other than that door, there were three other doors that led to different parts of the shack, including one by a sign labelled 'Gift Shop'.

"Oh. Duh," Aya said with a painful grimace on her face.

"It comes!" Fran yelled suddenly. Sora spun around to see the Pterodactyl gliding just above the trees, causing a few of the branches to snap. Fran aimed her bow and waited until the creature was close and its mouth was open before releasing her arrow. The Pterodactyl let out a screech as the arrow connected with its jaw and flew up towards the pale moon.

Sora ran up to the front door quickly and pounded on it with his fists, yelling, "Hey! Hey! Anyone in there?"

The door opened almost instantly and Sora stepped back to look at the older man. He scratched his chin and looked down at him with a disgruntled expression. "We're closed. Can't you see the sign?"

Sora looked at him incredulously. "There's no… sign."

The man leaned over him and looked at the door before pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket and pinning it onto the door. "Oops. Now you see it."

"This isn't a joke! There's a giant monster flying above us as we speak about to tear our frickin' heads off. We'll give you whatever you want but just let us stay here for the night, that's all we ask of you," Aya begged.

"Whatever I want, huh?" the man considered with a not-so-subtle smile. "Alright, you win. Name's Stan Pines. Make yourselves comfortable, but not too comfortable."

"Thank you," Luna said as the group ran into the house. Sora waited for Kupopo to fly in before closing the door and backing away.

 _THUNK!_

Their eyes moved upwards where they had heard something descend on the roof. Luna walked over to the window and parted the curtain slightly to peer outside. Suddenly, something smacked against the window causing her to scream and fall back into Aya's arms.

"Wow, you kids weren't kidding. For the sake of my mon-eh, I mean, the adorable kids living with me, you better hope this thing clears up by itself or I'm kicking you straight out the first thing in the morning," Stan said.

"You have children? What are their names?" Aya asked.

"Nah, not mine. They're my nephew and niece-in-law's. They came to stay in Gravity Falls for the summer so I'm having them help out at the Mystery Shack."

"Summer? Isn't it winter?" Sora asked.

"Not necessarily. Depending on which side of the world you're in, it can be summer where you are and winter for another person," Balthier explained.

"That's crazy! So, let's say it's divided by a line. I can jump back and forth over said line and switch between winter and summer, just like that?" Luna asked.

"In theory, yes," Balthier said.

"You're giving her ideas, Balthier. Now she's going to want to go out and search for this line just to do that," Sora said.

"Oh, please. Like you wouldn't do it too," Luna replied.

"So, uh, why's Miss Prissy Princess tagging along?" Stan asked, his eyes centred on Pacifica.

Pacifica scoffed. "It's not like I want to be in your stinky shack anyway."

"Oh yeah, our shack is way beneath royalty like you Northwests, right? I mean, you technically are the founders of the town after all. Oh wait, I seem to remember Dipper telling me something to the contrary. Wouldn't want that getting out now, would we?"

"Ugh, you really are the worst," Pacifica said, folding her arms.

"Yeah. You could say I'm not above blackmail," Stan replied with a conniving chuckle. Before the conversation could go elsewhere or worse, even further, Stan and the group looked up again as they heard a scratching sound coming from above.

"Whelp, I'm not getting any sleep tonight," Stan said as he walked towards the next room. "You can sleep on the couch and floor. Bathroom's down the hallway, though if you all want to go at the same time you might have to go outside."

"Ha Ha, very funny," said Aya's companion sarcastically.

"What, I was being serious. Goodnight, don't let the Pterodactyl bite," Stan bid before disappearing into the next room.

"Oh, we should probably introduce ourselves," the boy said, turning to look at Sora. "I'm Caleb and this is Aya."

"And you're both Horus, huh?" Sora asked.

"We were. More specifically under the division led by Janus," Aya said.

"Janus?" Luna asked, before glancing at Sora.

 _The guy who tortured Riku and Xion_ , Sora thought with a nod at her before looking back at them. "So you helped him? You attacked a peaceful village, killed people and took two of my friends. I'm sorry, did you expect me to sympathize?"

"We weren't a part of that attack! Janus managed to convince some of the Lunarians who were dissatisfied with the war to turn to his side. Right now, the Lunarians have been compromised and they have no idea. He could march into their stronghold at any moment though I think the only thing stopping him is their numbers against his," Aya said.

"I don't care about your war!" Sora stressed his syllables in anger. "This world used to be more peaceful than it is now. Other than the Heartless, we didn't have much to worry about. They could be contained because we did our best. Then I opened the floodgates and released you people-"

"Hold on, what do you mean by 'you people'? We're the same as you. We just came from a different time. That's the only thing separating us," Caleb cut in.

"You came to a world that wanted peace and you brought war. I don't think time is the only thing separating us," Sora refuted. "Besides, even if you weren't at the village. You still followed after that man. I'm sure that's not the only thing he or Horus have done. So what, did you suddenly decide to grow a conscience?"

"I suppose you could say that, yes. I don't deny that I've taken lives. I wear it on my sleeve," Caleb said, pulling up his sleeve to show them his wrist. There were cuts lined up in parallel to each other though they seemed to be fairly old as they were quite faded. "I reminded myself very much of the lives I took during my service under Janus. Other Keyblade Wielders just like you and me. That said, I stayed my hand when it came to the flesh of an innocent. I would never, could never, harm anyone who didn't deserve it. These cuts, if I hadn't done them, Aya would have had to in my stead. That's why… I killed for her. Because she couldn't do it, because she didn't want to die, I was her sword. Her Keyblade."

"You… never killed anyone? Not once?" Luna asked Aya.

"I tried once. I've fought Heartless before so I didn't think it could be so different. It turns out, killing flesh and blood is a lot harder than a Heartless," Aya said.

"Who'd have thought, huh?" Caleb said.

"Yeah… well, the Heartless we fought back then weren't nearly as aggressive as the few we encountered when we first woke up. The way they acted, you wouldn't have been able to tell a difference between a scared child and a Heartless. I almost failed a mission because I thought a Shadow looked so cute that I thought it couldn't possibly be harmless. I left it alone because of that. My indecision in that split second came back to bite me in the behind. It was the same Shadow that was responsible for taking my friend's life when she wasn't looking. This was back when Horus was united and wasn't so divided into factions like it was towards the end of the war. I was under Irva Torvald's command back then."

 _Flashback_

 _Aya failed to notice the tiny droplets of water that preceded the rain that was to come—or maybe she just didn't care. What was a little rain compared to the death of a loved one, much less one that had been the result of her negligence?_

 _She felt a presence nearby her but for the most part ignored it. For now, she wanted to tune out from the world and travel to happier times, the fleeting moments between her and Olivia that she had taken for granted, because whatever reason had she to believe that those moments with her would have been their last?_

 _The feeling of rain running down her forehead and the bridge of her nose suddenly ceased. She frowned and looked up. A man with long black hair and a steely gaze looked down on her. Above them both was a black umbrella shielding them from the rain._

" _Master Torvald, sir," Aya said, quickly trying to get up._

 _Irva held up his hand as if to tell her to relax and said, "Irva will do just fine. Aya is your name, correct?"_

" _Sir!" Aya said, taken aback. Never would she have thought in a million years that the commander's son would have known her name. She was but one of many Keyblade Wielders in the wide web that was Horus after all._

" _Don't act so surprised. I make an effort to remember everyone's name," Irva said. "The day comes soon when I will have to take over from my father. In truth, I would have us carry around dog tags so that those lost in battle with continue to exist through their names but father wouldn't have it. He says never forget that the mission is of more import than those who died for it. In that sense, I disagree with him, though that is not saying much as I disagree with him on a great many things. That is why when I replace him, I'm going to change Horus from the inside out."_

" _Master Irva, the prodigy of Horus. I think you'll go far," Aya said before looking down. "The least of which can be said for me. I might not even have a place here to see you rise."_

" _Because you failed your mission?"_

" _Not exactly. I finished the mission. Out of anger and a thirst for revenge I chased a tiny Shadow to the ends of the earth just to destroy it, but only after losing someone I cared about. I can't say it didn't feel good either. Giving in at that moment. But now as I sit here, I just feel angry again. Angry at myself and my own weakness," Aya said._

" _Is anger supposed to be a bad thing?"_

" _Huh?" Aya looked up in surprise, but Irva's eyes had long since left her and instead were off somewhere in the distance._

" _Anger is a natural human emotion. To suppress it would be only to do yourself harm. We humans are not indestructible creatures. Choosing not to wear your emotions on your sleeve is to subjugate yourself to torment and pain. Keep enough inside and one day, just one day, is enough to see all that hard effort burst. When that moment comes, you'll fall so deep you will no longer be able to find the light." Irva looked down at her then and said, "Make no mistake. Your friend's death is your fault."_

 _Aya's eyes widened and she looked down at the ground again. The commander's son had said it himself, without any hesitation even. She knew that he had knack among his peers for being brutally honest but she could only imagine what that felt like, at least until now._

" _Does hearing that make you angry? I hope you weren't expecting pity. I have none for those who cannot help themselves even when they have the capability of doing so. You want to stay in Horus? Then use your anger. Turn it into passion. Let it drive you to your goals. If you wish to see me rise, if you wish to stay by my side, then stand on both your feet and walk," Irva said. It wasn't a command, for there was no need or urgency in his voice. It was more an ultimatum—stand on your feet and walk, or your words of praise mean nothing to me._

 _End Flashback_

"At the time… no, even now, I wondered what it was that drove him. If it was anger like my own, then he concealed it well. Maybe it was for the love of all that fought for Horus. Maybe it was his discontent at how his father ran things. Either way, contrary to his words, Irva was stoic and kingly whenever he was near someone. I wonder if he lets loose when he's near his friends. You know, get drunk, sing karaoke and all that jazz?"

"Does a guy like that even have any friends? Seems like that attitude would just push people away," Sora said.

"But it didn't. I drew people to him. It also helped that he was kind of hot too. There were fan clubs. Clubs that I may or may not have taken part in," Aya admitted.

"Of course there were fan clubs," Balthier said with a shake of his head.

"I wish I had a fan club, kupo! Who could resist a cute and adorable mascot like me?" Kupopo spiralled up into the air and held out his tiny arms.

"Hey! I'm already your number one fan." Luna thrust her arm out heroically, pointed at him and winked causing him to swoon and drop back to eye level.

"Can we stop talking about fan clubs?" Sora asked with a roll of his eyes. "Also it doesn't seem like you quite miss Horus. Thinking of jumping ship to Irva's crew then?"

"You're being too aggressive. Rather than jumping to conclusions, stay your tongue until after and let the lady finish," Balthier told him.

"Oh. Er, sorry," Sora apologized.

"It's okay, but we really are done with Horus. After we find the Lunarians' base and warn them that they've been infiltrated, we'll be done with this war as well. It's not what I signed up for. I joined Horus because I wanted to protect the light. Not see it destroyed," Aya said.

"Mirage told us that Horus wanted to conquer the light, not protect it," Sora said.

"What? No one I ever spoke to in Horus ever had that impression. We wanted to protect it just as much as the other factions. Now, the way in which we needed to protect the light might have differed between the original leaders of the factions which is why each decided to travel a different road. That's the way I was told the story anyway," Aya said.

"Yeah. Three brothers and a sister, the original progenitors of the Keyblade. They all wanted to protect the light but couldn't agree on the right way of doing it so they split. Two of the brothers, Oberis and Cephadalus joined together to create the Cephadalus faction. The sister, Lunete, created the Lunarians in response and finally the last brother, Cian, created Horus. At some point, something happened between Oberis and Cephadalus to split even them apart. I've heard theories, one of the more enjoyable being that Oberis, who was said to be quite flirtatious, slept with Cephadalus' wife," Caleb told them.

"A Casanova by any other name," Balthier remarked.

"So how long ago was this? The people who created the Keyblade I mean," Sora said.

"Oh, about a good one-hundred-thirty odd years before I was born?" Caleb guessed.

"That's a pretty specific number for a guess," Balthier said.

"No, I remember it being a part of my classes at the academy. Um, we had academies back then, for Keyblade Wielders. It wasn't just training in art of combat, of course. Mathematics, English, Philosophy, History, even Sociology, delving deep into the different systems of government, law and order. We were told it was particularly important to learn about them because we had to respect those forms of rule whether we disagreed with them or not," Caleb said. "And it was of course through History that we learned about the progenitors. Supposedly, they were honored like gods among us Keyblade Wielders. The story goes that they were placed in tombs hidden around the world, of course no one's found them so I can't say whether that's true or not."

"Wait, step back a minute. Aya, you said you were originally under Irva Torvald's command. What made you switch to Janus?" Luna asked.

"The reason Caleb does what I can't do in my stead. It was nearer to the end of the war and we were tasked by Irva's father to retrieve some files from a mansion in a place called Twilight Town," Aya said.

"Yeah, we've heard of it," Sora said.

"Well, the problem was that it was controlled by the Cephadalus, and we didn't know at the time. Things happened and there was a huge fight. I remember fighting against someone and managing to fend them off. He was a boy about the same age as me. He had shown no hesitation in killing my comrades, but there I stood above him, apprehensive and scared out of my mind. Something, somewhere in my head, wasn't clicking. Then, he laughed at me. I felt so ashamed, because even though I had the advantage, I was unable to do anything with it. He was about to attack me again when one of my comrades reached me just in time and plunged her Keyblade into his stomach. I knew then that I would never be able to get used to it. I wouldn't be able to do what was necessary to stay by Master Irva's side. The very next day I requested a transferal to a different company," Aya said.

"Janus'," Luna answered for her.

Aya nodded. "I was thinking of quitting completely but I still wanted to protect the light. I guess I'm just not willing to protect it enough to the point where I'd have to kill someone."

"If you have to kill for it, I wouldn't think you were protecting the light at all," Fran told her. "Protecting the light comes through ensuring the preservation of peace, not pursuing war."

"I have no idea what any of you are talking about. You're all a bunch of weirdos. I'm going to sleep, like, in the hallway, away from the rest of you," Pacifica, who they had completely forgotten until the moment of her interjection, spoke out and left the room.

"Actually, we should all get some sleep," Balthier said after a few seconds of silence.

"Yeah, I don't think I'll be able to get any sleep knowing that there's a thing that wants to eat us hanging over our heads," Luna said.

"Well, with any luck, it's only interested in eating us, so you guys might not have to worry," Aya said.

"I looked like a Wraith. They're not just plain old creatures either," Sora said. He proceeded to tell them about their true nature, that they were failed subjects who were involved in the creation of Keyblades.

"Wait… so you mean to tell me that our Keyblades are-" Aya couldn't finish her sentence. She puffed out her cheeks, held up her hand and ran out of the room.

"And now they've come back for their revenge, huh? Damn it! I've heard tales of other Keyblade Wielders in other groups who were slaughtered by those things! DAMN IT! Why do we have to pay for something we had no control over?" Caleb said, his voice trembling in anger.

Sora looked at him with little emotion in his eyes as he said, "I could ask you the same thing."

* * *

 ** _A Tiny Room Somewhere..._**

The first thing Astra realized when waking up was that she was bound to a simple wooden chair by rope. She tried wiggling about in an attempt to free herself but she just ended up sending both the chair and herself to the floor.

Ow… great, you've done it now, genius, Astra thought, letting out a huff of annoyance. She heard the sound of a door opening and very soon she and the chair were set upright so she could look around. The room she was in was small and cold. The only light coming into the room was from the window behind her. Otherwise, it was just her and two other people in a dank and musty room with chipped paint on the walls.

The girl in the duo stepped forward and beamed. "Good evening, Astra. I trust you slept well?"

"Not sure. How about I stick a tranquilizer dart in you so we can find out?" Astra asked, craning her neck from side to side.

The girl laughed and clutched her stomach. "Oh, you are so funny! I can just tell we are going to be the best of friends!"

"Friends… now that's funny," Astra sighed.

"Oh don't be like that. Everyone is my friend," the girl said. Her smile transitioned into a pout. "Unfortunately, most recently, one of my friends hasn't been very honest with me. Aren't friends supposed to be honest with each other? It- it's not fair! WAAAHHHHH! Why do you hate me, Alfonso?"

"Alfonso?" Astra asked. The girl's fake crying quickly ceased and she smiled again.

"You'll help me, won't you? Poor Alfonso… he just won't listen and I'm afraid that his heart won't be able to handle what happens to him next! All you need to do is tell me where Kohle is."

"Even if I did know where he is, like hell I'll help you! And why should I believe a word you say about Alfonso? How do I know you're not tricking me?" Astra asked.

"Because I was theee-erreeee," the girl sang. "Moira's Crescent's HQ? Braeburn Town? Ring-ring-ringing any bells yet? I was there as your home burned to the ground and your friends in it."

"No… you're lying!" Astra accused.

"And before you ask, Kohle wasn't among them, fortunately for us, because we need him. You should really ask yourself, Astra, just who is Kohle? Because depending on that answer, you'll find out whether it's truly worth trying to protect him," the girl said.

Now this, Astra had to laugh at. "Are you trying to make me question my loyalty? Sorry, lady, but I've been let down plenty of times in my life. Why, if I were to find out tomorrow that Kohle liked to dress up in women's clothes I don't think I'd care. Everyone has their secrets, things they'd rather keep to themselves. And who am I to pry? The world keeps turning and so do I. Translation—bite me!"

"I'm sorry to hear that. I guess… no! I still have hope that we can be the best of friends. You just need a little persuasion is all," said the girl. She walked over to the door and opened it before looking back at the other man standing in the room. "Don't break anything. I'll be heading back to Radiant Garden now. Inform me if the situation changes."

"Of course, lieutenant," said the man. He waited for the door to close and then his eyes were on Astra. He spared little time and threw a punch, driving it into her face. "Where's Kohle?"

Astra spat on the floor and looked up at the man. "Did your granny teach you to punch like that? Come on, get right up in there. I dare you."

"Why you little- Agh!" As the man moved in closer to punch her again, Astra threw her head forward and met the man's forehead in a headbutt. She stood on two feet and turned, bending over and backed the chair's legs into the man, slamming him into the wall and breaking the chair's legs in the process, thus freeing Astra from the ropes. The man gritted his teeth and moved in for another punch but Astra ran forward and speared him back into the wall. Before the man could recover, Astra clutched his head and brought it down as she brought her right knee upwards. As the man's head rebounded from the attack, Astra swung a punch and hit him against the wall, knocking him out.

"And they said I watched too much wrestling," Astra said grinning. She walked over to the window and tried to reach for it, but it was too high up. She looked around the room for something to help her up but other than the chair which she had just broken there was nothing else is the room. She would have to go out through the front, which wasn't exactly the best way to go about things but it wasn't like she had much of a choice.

Astra quickly dragged the unconscious man's body over to the window before initiating the next phase of her plan. Summoning the Midnight Mauve, Astra pointed it at the door and blasted it open. She quickly ran over to the left of the door and watched as another person ran past her into the room, before moving in from behind. She pressed her feet down against the back of the man's knee to bring him down to her level before locking her arm around his neck and lifting the Keyblade to it.

"Hi, you're going to get me out of here. You even think about leading me the wrong way and I'll make sure you're the first to die. Capiche?" Astra said.

"I understand," he said with a prompt nod. Astra was about to push him forward when another question popped into her head.

"Where did they take the dragon?"

"Dragon? What are you talking about? Wait, don't tell me those two knuckleheads were telling the truth after all..." The man said.

"Did I say you could say anything more than is necessary for my question?" Astra asked. She would have to figure out a way to get to the dragon later but for now, getting out of this building alive was her concern first and foremost.

She slowly untangled her arms from the man's neck and grabbed the back of his collar before ordering him to move. They turned left after leaving the room and continued down the corridor, all the while with Astra looking behind her to make sure no one had spotted them.

As they turned the corner they came into another room that looked like a foyer. Astra peered over the man's arm and counted at least three other people up ahead. Waiting until they reached the door frame, Astra let go off the man and kicked him forward. She dropped to the floor and aimed her Keyblade underneath the man, sniping a quick Fire at the girl directly in front of the man. She scrambled forward and grabbed the man again, pulling him across the foyer along with her.

"Hey! Stop!" someone yelled. Astra saw someone coming in from her right and turned again before throwing the man forward. This seemed to slow down the other Keyblade wielder coming for her and she instead focused on the woman coming down the stairs. The woman cast Pearl magic, sending several balls of light at Astra. Astra quickly cut through them by unleashing a wave of energy and then returned her own magic, knocking the woman off her balance.

"Sorry, I'd love to stick around for a chat but I have places to be and people to see. Sayonara, suckers," Astra said. She blew open the front door and left the building. Transforming her Keyblade into a bike, Astra hopped on but was soon knocked off as fire magic smashed into the vehicle from behind. Astra rolled onto her back and grabbed her reverted Midnight Mauve Keyblade before aiming a dead on fire attack at one of the people shooting at her.

"Don't let her get away or Lieutenant Caster will have our hides!" she could hear the voice of the man who she had captured yell from afar.

"Do you people ever give up?!" she yelled back before taking off. She could see a lumber mill in the distance. If they were going to pursue then she would just have to pick them off one by one.


	27. The War on Humanity

**A/N: It feels hard to believe that it's the 15th Anniversary for Kingdom Hearts, especially considering I first started this trilogy in its 10th anniversary. Here's to five years and while I'd certainly like to believe I could finish this by the end of this year, this might be two years like the other stories. Who can say? Only one way to find it. Let's get down to it.**

* * *

Chapter 26

The War on Humanity

Despite the initial hostility, Aya and Caleb's presence among Sora and the others quickly proved to be a relaxing one. Sora was greeted first thing in the morning by the smiling face of Caleb who had wasted little time in preparing all of them breakfast.

"Did you even ask the guy living here if you could use the kitchen?" Sora asked him after being presented the vegetable omelette.

"Of course! What do you think I am? A thief?" Caleb said. "So? How does it taste?"

 _Well I haven't eaten it yet so…_ Sora thought as he cut off a piece and took a bite. Even before tasting, he was immediately overwhelmed by the aromatic scent of spices that all seemed to complement each other well. One thing was for sure, Caleb was no joke when it came to the kitchen.

"Damn, this is pretty good. Instead of fighting they should send you to the kitchen instead," Sora said.

"Heh, I know you're joking but it is true that a lot of the friends I made are going to miss my cooking," Caleb replied laughing.

 _I wasn't joking though_ , Sora thought, but ultimately decided against making such a meaningless comment.

"Still," Caleb continued as he watched Sora eat. "I would like to do something with my talents, you know? Instead of just squandering them and letting life pass me by. Maybe I'll open up a restaurant somewhere. Get people from all over to come by and taste my home town's cooking."

"Well, if you did, I suppose I'd have to bring the rest of my friends along as your first customers?" Sora said, before pointing at the omelette with his fork. "This is pretty spicy."

"It's a family thing," Caleb said.

"No, don't get me wrong, it's good! Preserving a part of who you are is a good thing. In fact, now that I know that, it tastes even better," Sora admitted with a grin.

"Glad to hear it." Caleb grinned back before his mouth became a straight line. "So… does that mean we're cool? You guys and Aya and me, I mean?"

"Were you hoping that making me an omelette would win me over?" Sora asked. Caleb seemed to freeze up and was unable to find words coherent enough to string together a sentence. Sora let out a laugh and gave him a light punch on the shoulder. "I'm kidding. Sorry for making you nervous. Anyway, if you and Aya really are serious about this, then I'm willing to give you a chance."

"Thanks, we won't let you down and if we do you can just feed us to that Pterodactyl. Speaking of which, I checked outside when I woke up. It's gone. For now. But if what you say is true, then it will be back. It wants revenge against us Keyblade Wielders after all."

"I'm surprised you actually decided to risk going outside in the first place," Sora said.

"Well, we can't be cooped in here forever, can we? But I have to know, just why are you here in Gravity Falls?" Caleb asked.

Sora pondered his answer with a somewhat lengthy pause. "I think it's better to tell you that in front of Aya and the others."

After finishing his breakfast, Sora joined Caleb and the others in the front room. It was the early hours of the morning and they planned to make way for departure as they had promised Stan Pines the night before. They weren't the only ones who were up however. Sora entered the room to find two kids shooting question after question at Luna and the others. He immediately made to turn around, but Luna caught sight of him before he could retreat.

"Hey, Sora, come meet Dipper and Mabel," she called out to him deliberately. He winced before spinning around and walking up to meet them.

"Hey there! I'm Sora. Nice to meet you two. So you're staying with your uncle for the summer?" Sora asked, hoping they didn't ask him too many questions. He had the pleasure of sleeping in a rather unfortunate position last night, one that made it feel as if his head was about to fall off.

"Hehe, yeah, Grunkle Stan's pretty cool. There's also two more people who help run the Mystery Shack. They'll be dropping by later. You should stick around until they come. More people means more parties, after all," the energetic Mabel yelled.

"Mabel, we are not holding another party. I couldn't even get through the last one you guys held without suffering a massive headache," Dipper said.

"But what if your precious Wendy's there," Mabel teased.

Dipper seemed to grow a light shade of pink before shaking his head. "That doesn't matter. Besides, I told you I put that behind me already." He looked towards the group and, what was possibly an attempt to change the subject altogether said, "Also there's one more person you haven't been introduced to yet. He's-"

The vending machine swung open like a door as if on cue to reveal Stan Pines looking back on them.

"Err, what? Stanley, you didn't tell me you'd be having customers around at this time of the morning," the man said. On second thought, Sora wasn't quite so sure that he was the same man they had seen last night. He was missing the five o'clock shadow that Sora had seen him with and aside from not wearing the fez, his glasses were a lot more rounded unless he was wearing another pair.

"Oh, this would be our other great uncle, Stanford Pines, though we just call him Ford. He's Grunkle Stan's twin brother," Dipper explained while rubbing the nape of the neck. "And oh boy, what an entrance that was. You were not supposed to see that."

"I saw it," Luna said.

"So did I," said Aya with a huge grin on her face. "You have a secret room? That is SO cool! I love secret rooms. I have a knack for finding secret rooms actually. One time I accidentally tripped and knocked some books off a shelf and guess what? It opened a door!"

"Well, there's nothing through this one except my trophy room so I'm sorry to upset you," Ford said.

"Yeah, sure. Most people don't have secret rooms just to hide trophies," Aya said. "Any more secret rooms you have lying about?"

"Secrets are meant to be secrets for a reason. I don't believe we should pry into things we don't understand, much less that we're ready to comprehend. We have our goals and he has his, that's all there is to it," Balthier said.

"Balthier's right. We'll try not to think about it," Caleb replied eyeing a rather downtrodden Aya.

"Well, at least Pacifica wasn't here to see it. She'd run her mouth about it to the entire town," Dipper said. "Though with everything else she probably says about us, I'm not exactly sure hidden room would be any more believable. Why is she here anyway?"

"Gnomes. A lot of gnomes," Sora said.

"Oh, you've seen those pesky little troublemakers? Well, so much for first impressions, but hopefully it hasn't thrown you off the rest of the town. You're new here, right? I haven't seen you guys before. Well, I won't deny that Gravity Falls has its strange side but it's kind of fun in its own way," Dipper said.

"Ooh, ooh, I know! I can be your tourist guide! I can totally show you around. I've been waiting for this moment. I know this place like the back of my hand," Mabel said.

"Mabel, that's wonderful and all bu-"

"Be back in just a moment!" Mabel rushed back up the stairs before Balthier could finish, prompting him to look towards the others.

"Come on, Balthier, why ruin a girl's dream? I don't want to make her sad so I'm all for it," Luna said.

"Glad you see it that way, Luna!"

"AAAH! That was quick," Luna screamed, jumping away from Mabel who had suddenly appeared right beside her. She was dressed in a purple blazer and dress with a badge on her lapel that spelled out her name.

"Might as well start the tour here. I'm your tour guide Mabel and on behalf of everyone here I'd like to welcome you all to Gravity Falls. Let the currents of the falls themselves carry you into a world of wonder and intrigue the likes of which you've never seen before. If you have any questions, don't be afraid to ask. I am here for you after all," Mabel said. "Our first tour will be none other than our very own pride and joy of the town, the Mystery Shack."

"She is scary good at this for her first time," Dipper said. And so began a rather long day of what should have been a relatively straightforward task of locating the piece of heart that resided in the town. As if having somehow planned this beforehand, Mabel was meticulous and spared no shortcuts in showing them all Gravity Falls had to offer, from the strange to not-so-strange antiques of the mystery shack to the delicious coffee and donuts of the diner in the center of town. As for Pacifica, she reluctantly decided to tag along with them until they reached the town so she could be picked up by her parents. Due to errands they had to run however, she would be staying with them for some time.

"I now know the wondrous joy of coffee and donuts. I feel like a complete man now," Sora said, digging into the food as soon as "Lazy" Susan placed the order on their table. It suddenly dawned upon him that Fran was not at the table and looking around, he soon found that she was nowhere in sight. "Where's Fran?"

"Viera and sugar don't go together too well, trust me on that. She told me just before we came here that she would go out into the forest instead to hunt," Balthier said.

"Ah, she didn't need to do that. I'm sure there's something non-sugary on this menu," Aya said, leaning forward to look down at the menu. Her smile faded as she went farther down the list. "On second thought, good for taking it into her own hands."

"I suppose it would be a bit weird if she were to be around anyway. I don't really recall seeing many people with rabbit ears around here," Sora said.

"Oh, I wouldn't usually worry about that too much. Most who pass her just think she's cosplaying," Balthier answered.

"Cosplay…ing?" Sora asked.

"It's where people dress up as a fictional character. They meet up with other people who share the same passions as they do and even sometimes engage in competitions for who has the best outfit and such," Balthier explained after taking a sip of his coffee.

"Oh! So it's kind of like trick or treating for Halloween?" Sora asked.

"Ooh, sounds like my kind of thing. I certainly have the figure for it, don't you think?" "Lazy" Susan asked.

"I'd pay to see it," Aya said. She looked to Luna who had her gaze fixed on Pacifica who was sitting at separate table near the diner's jukebox.

Luna felt Aya's eyes on her and looked in her direction. "Is something wrong?"

"I was about to ask you that. You should go and talk to her if you're worried about her," Aya advised. Luna looked down at her coffee for a moment before timidly nodding and getting up. She reached the table and sat across from her. The blonde threw a glance Luna's way before returning to the window.

"What do you want?" she eventually asked.

Luna frowned at the girl's dismissiveness and leaned in to the point where it started to make Pacifica uncomfortable. "That's not nice. We're concerned about you. Aren't we allowed to be?"

"That's funny. Never heard that one before," a disgruntled Pacifica said, sinking into her chair.

Luna smiled at her held up her hand to call "Lazy" Susan over to them. "I have a slice of pie, thanks."

"Coming right up," the waitress said before disappearing behind the counter.

Luna turned her attention back to Pacifica and said, "I know someone like you. She was in my year at school and, probably just like you, was the most popular girl around. She was also a bully-"

"I'm sorry, why are you telling me this? You saved my life, that's it. I get that I owe you something but it's not like I asked you to tell me your life story," Pacifica retorted.

"It's exactly because you don't listen that you're not very well liked among us 'not normal' people. When I first rescued you, I couldn't help but see that girl who bullied me in you. I was angry. I realize now that it was wrong to displace those feelings onto you. I want to get to know you Pacifica. I want us to be friends," Luna said. She looked up to see "Lazy" Susan returning with the slice of pie. She quickly paid her and slid the plate over to Pacifica.

"What?" Pacifica asked, looking from the pie to Luna.

"Eat up. I got it for you," Luna said.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Pacifica asked with caution.

"Because deep down I think you realize you're missing something, and it's something your parents or money can't give you," Luna said. "Besides, you said you owe me something, right? Then eat up."

A small smile appeared on Pacifica's face, one that she tried to conceal only for Luna to see right through it. As Pacifica picked up the fork and cut off a section of the pie to eat, Luna thought back to the two girls who had tormented her for a good portion of her school life, at least before Astra came into her life. One day, she would meet those girls again, and if they were willing to listen, Luna would finally be able to wipe away a rather grimy part of her past.

"Well, maybe there's hope for her yet," Mabel said, watching them interact along with Sora, Aya, Caleb and Balthier.

"Yeah, if Luna butters her up enough maybe she'll actually be willing to get along with you guys," Sora said. Spotting a newspaper rack by the door leading to the bathrooms, Sora went over and took a paper before setting it down on the table for everyone to see.

"You read newspapers?" Balthier asked.

"Err, yeah? I mean, not always but Luna's usually the one who urges me to look in papers whenever we go to a new world- er, place," Sora said. He really had to get used to not referring to these places they were coming across as worlds, though with the disparity in appearance of many of these places, it was hard to not see them as separate.

"Huh, color me surprised. I didn't think you read," Balthier said.

"Excuse me! What did I do to make your waffles soggy in the morning? I'm not illiterate. I just have a short attention span is all," Sora said.

"Aya and I do the same thing actually. It's the best way of keeping track of everyone's activities. If a particular place seems like a danger zone we don't tend to stay in that area for too long," Caleb said. "Of course, some places don't even have the luxury of having newspapers so when it comes to those places it's really only a matter of asking around."

"Well, we're probably different. I'm looking to head into the danger. We're looking for pieces of Kingdom Hearts," Sora revealed to them.

"Kingdom Hearts? What happened to Kingdom Hearts?" Aya asked. Sora told them about the aftermath of having brought back the Keyblade Wielders like Aya and Caleb from Kingdom Hearts and the fracture it had caused in doing so. He conveniently left out the part about Yeul. "So if we don't restore it back to full power, the world will end. The first piece of heart we found, a group of scientists were experimenting on it because they thought it could provide a source of renewable energy. It backfired on them like you'd expect."

"Then we really can't let them fall into the wrong hands, huh?" Aya said.

"But Sora… just the four of you doing this?" Caleb asked.

"Hey, what about Fran, kupo?" Kupopo asked.

Caleb looked at him and if just realizing that he was here for the first time, held up his hands in apology. "Oops, sorry. Fran was the one I included in that, not you. Heh."

"Just be honest with your feelings, kupo. Everyone else is," Kupopo said in a dejected tone.

"Hold on a second, here's something. _'Recent seismic activity in the town of Gravity Falls has prompted an enquiry into the causes. The first of these series of earthquakes, which was of a magnitude of 3.0 occurred a month ago at 2:00am. This was followed by three more seismic waves of the same magnitude at exactly the same time within the following weeks. Mayor Tyler Cutebiker has launched a full-scale investigation into the incidents, though has assured the public that there is no need to panic for now. This comes at a time of great importance for the new mayor, who was only elected through the illegitimacy of his rival candidates.'_ "

"So you think it's the heart that's causing that?" Aya asked him.

"If I were a betting man, I'd put all my chips in," Sora answered confidently.

"That still doesn't negate my point though. Even if it's just the five of you, you have, what, seven of those pieces to collect? You've collected two so far, great, well done, but that still leaves four others excluding the one here. To carry this weight by yourselves alone, it's a tremendous task, especially when you have other Keyblade Wielders coming after you. Even if you think you can handle, I'm asking you to think about Luna," Caleb said.

"You're saying I should find help?" Sora asked. Caleb nodded at him and Sora wrapped both his hands around his coffee cup as he pondered on Caleb's advice. Riku and Kairi, he had completely lost track of and Aqua he wasn't likely to see again for a while. He remembered that she and Neuge had set up an organization dedicated to protecting the worlds. He could ask them but he didn't want to risk compromising their location or distract them from anything they were doing at the moment. So then did he really have no one to go to? No, there was one more thing he could try, but it was crazy, and now that he thought about it would they even help him?

"Balthier!"

Everyone turned around to see Fran breathing frantically, a sight most unusual for someone normally calm.

"What's the matter Fran?" Balthier asked as she staggered towards them.

"A man… in the woods… as I was hunting… he- he calls himself… Janus…" Fran said before falling over.

"Oh my! Someone call an ambulance!" "Lazy" Susan screamed in horror.

Aya frowned. "Err, isn't that your job?"

"Oh. Oh right," "Lazy" Susan realized, but before she could move again, Balthier stood up.

"No need to worry, Susan. I've got things handled here," Balthier said. He walked over to Fran and picked her up in his arms. "Is it just me or have you gotten heavier since I last picked you up?"

"Ever the gentleman," Fran murmured.

"You always said I was too honest for a Sky Pirate," Balthier said. As they left the diner, Sora couldn't help but look at Aya and Caleb and somewhere behind him, he felt Luna was doing the same. The two had gone completely pale. Caleb had a pained look on his face but it was Aya's eyes that were the most frightening. She looked completely terrified as if she had just come across a ghost.

* * *

 ** _The Lumber Mill, Near Millhaven_**

Astra stretched her arms and let her head hang to the side for a moment as she walked past the bodies of Keyblade wielders lying on the ground of the lumber mill. She hadn't excelled in her combat tests in the simulation room of Moira's Crescent's HQ for nothing, though actually listening to instructions was another thing entirely. It was after walking past her fifth body that she felt something grab hold of her right shoe. She peered down to see one of the Keyblade wielders who had come after her.

"You guys are such a pain, you know that?" Astra said.

"This isn't over… AGH!" The man was silenced as left set her left foot down on the man's face.

"Yes it is," Astra said. "You can tell your boss when you see her that you messed up, and she can chase me to the ends of the earth if she wants to, but she better not come ill-prepared."

Astra placed her foot back on the ground and wiggled her right foot out of the man's grasp before walking off. She had seen a sign on her way here showing the nearest town to be only a few kilometres from where she was. The only clue she really had to go on was what that man in the Ringleader outfit had told her just before she had been put to sleep—he was running a circus. Something as big as that would surely be popular among at least a few of the townspeople.

Astra reached the exit of the mill and was about to set off down the road when something else caught her attention. It was a sound coming from near the forest trees. She pressed a hand against her ear and listened closely. Her eyes widened and she jumped back quickly before transforming her Midnight Mauve into a giant shield. The next thing she knew, she was being assaulted from all sides as raven-like Wraith bulleted past her or slammed into her shield. The battering soon ended and the shield reverted back into her Keyblade as she turned around to see the flock of ravens flying off into the sky. She then turned her attention downwards to see a whole bunch of them lying dead on the ground. They then glowed a bright purple before withering away into dust.

"What's got their panties in a twist?" Astra asked, her breath slightly taken away by their incredible speed and sudden appearance. She had first learned about their true nature from the gods up on Mount Olympus.

 _Flashback_

"… _and make no mistake, though those who came before you may not see eye to eye on the same principles that you Keyblade wielders have upheld for generations past the Keyblade War, there is no need to stoop to their level," Zeus explained to her. Astra and Hercules stood in the middle of the Chamber of the Gods though not all of them were present. The only other god besides Zeus in the chamber was his wife, Hera. Astra hadn't exactly announced her appearance beforehand and it wasn't expected that a human would be standing in the presence of the gods anyway. Zeus continued, "When this conflict ends, the world will need people to look up to. Though temptation may steer you towards a path where the end justifies the means, you must avert your eyes from such a path and continue to uphold the values of current Keyblade wielders. You must be the beacon of hope that guides the mortal realm in these times of madness, much like those who lead us out of the aftermath of the war before."_

" _I'm not a leader. I can't be what people want. I'm not malleable that way. I'll leave that to the real Keyblade wielders," Astra said._

" _Things like war have a way of awakening things in us that we never knew. You say you're not a leader but you might not get to decide that when the time comes," Hera said. "And if you're the only one left standing? What happens then?"_

" _That… that won't happen," Astra said, looking down at her feet._

" _I would agree, though preparing for every eventuality is necessary," Hera replied. "But now that you're here this also another matter that we must discuss. The Wraith."_

" _Wraith? You mean those strange creatures? I just thought they were new Heartless," Hercules said._

" _If only it were that simple. No, as far as we know, the Heartless, at least in the Realm of Light, are all but extinct. A Keyblade Master by the name of Riku informed us as to the name of these new creatures, and while we know little about them, it would be worth looking into their existence," Zeus said before addressing Astra more directly. "What little we know is that the bodies they inhabit are merely mannequins, or vessels. Upon defeat, they simply abandon that vessel and transfer themselves into another. Therefore, ostensibly, defeating them is impossible. I say ostensibly because I would appreciate it if you could try and find a way."_

 _End Flashback_

Astra wasn't even sure where to start with the task she had been assigned and it wasn't exactly her priority either. She started off down the road and transitioned into a jog. She longed for the days when she and Luna played detective, making up mysteries for the most part and even sometimes solving real ones. If Astra had Luna with her, at least they could solve the mystery of the Wraith together and even have fun doing it. It was ultimately why Astra needed Luna a lot more than Luna needed her even though Luna felt the opposite. Or maybe she was thinking about it the wrong way. They were two halves of a whole and Astra had completely disrespected that balance through a fit of jealousy.

It had taken her a while to admit it, but she had finally come to accept it. She was jealous of Sora. Jealous and frightened that Luna wouldn't need her anymore and that she would be alone. Of course, as much as Astra wanted to pop in, see her and apologize, she couldn't if only for the simple reason that she doubted Luna was even still on the Destiny Islands where she and Kohle had left her and Sora. It just didn't seem like Luna to stand around and not follow her dreams.

It also wasn't befitting of Astra to stop moving either. Whatever her regrets, the stubborn girl that she was, that she couldn't help being, pushed those pangs of conscience into the shadows and her goals into the spotlight. No matter the task assigned to her and her alone, no matter how impossible it may have seemed, she would not complain. It was for the sake of a brighter future after all.

* * *

 ** _The Mystery Shack, Gravity Falls_**

As Sora, Luna and the others made their way back to the Mystery Shack, yet another odd situation befell them. Dipper was lying against the wall, groaning in pain and just few feet in front of him was Stan Pines unconscious.

"Dipper! Grunkle Stan!" Mabel yelled, leaving their side. She arrived at her Stan first and knelt beside him. "What happened?"

"A guy came here. Said he wanted the journal. Grunkle Stan tried to protect me but…" Dipper said, standing up with Mabel's help.

"Is he alright?" Luna asked as she neared them. Mabel leaned forward with her ear close to Stan's mouth.

"Snrk! _Moneymoneymoneymoney_! Snrk!"

"He's A-OK!" Mabel announced, giving them the thumbs up.

"Well that's good to hear. I'll get him back inside," Caleb said. He hoisted Stan up to lean on his shoulder and proceeded to slowly carry the man into the shack. He returned not too long after and looked at Aya before focusing on Dipper. "Mind telling us what exactly happened?"

 _Flashback_

 _Janus extended his hand while keeping his eyes on the frightened Dipper. "There's no need to worry. Your uncle will be alright. But for now, the journal."_

" _N-no, I won't give it to you!" Dipper yelled, clutching onto the journal with all his might. A gust of wind shot out from Janus' hand and launched Dipper backwards, tripping over Stan's body and sending him slamming into the wall of the Mystery Shack. His back ached but Dipper mustered up enough strength to stand up again, leaning against the building for support._

" _Don't make this difficult for yourself. As long as you hand over the journal, no harm will befall you or your family." Janus seemed to hesitate before lowering his hand and smiling. "Or is there something else you desire? To be taller? For that birthmark on your forehead to disappear? Maybe even for a girl who's out of your league?"_

" _How did you-" Dipper's voice faded, surprised that the man in front of him knew of things he had only ever told a select handful of people._

" _You ought to be less insecure. Be more honest with yourself. You want these things. Dreams aren't something to supress. In a world where people constantly try to put each other down, I think you deserve to be happy," Janus said. "And it can still happen, but only if you give me the journal."_

 _The gap between the journal and Dipper's chest increased and he looked down. "W-what will you do with it?"_

" _It's but one step in many to free this world from the chains of that which bind it. Somewhere out there is a heart that controls the destiny of you, me and everyone you care for. I will free us from those chains, from a slavery that was determined for us since birth and will carry on long after we're both dead. I will place out fates where they rightfully belong, back in the hands of the people. Dipper, Mason, this is a war on humanity for the sake of saving humanity, and Gravity Falls is where I will make that declaration."_

" _A war… on humanity?" Dipper asked. It was no use, he was too confused, confused about how this man even knew so much about him. He could almost feel Janus drawing nearer, reaching out to him. Just then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw something. A shadow in the light. It was this shadow that he chose to put his trust in._

" _You want this book so badly, come and get it!" Dipper yelled, before putting all his strength into tossing book at the sun. As the journal fell back to earth, Janus reached out for it only for the journal to be snapped up by the jaws of a Pterodactyl. The creature flew off in the direction of the mountains and Dipper let out a whistle as he watched. As for Janus, he chuckled. And then he laughed, clearly amused by the entire situation._

" _What luck! I can't even be mad at that," Janus said. "Well, time for me to catch a bird. Oh, and tell Caleb and Aya I said hi."_

 _End Flashback_

"DAMN HIM!" Caleb cursed in anger. "That bastard won't stop until he finds us."

"But how did even know the two of you were here?" Luna asked. "Or even know those things about Dipper for that matter?"

"It's something about him. I don't know what specifically, but he always wears those yellow tinted aviators, even indoors. It's not hard to guess that whatever it is has something to do with his eyes," Aya said.

"It doesn't matter. We can't stay here," Caleb said.

"But what about Sora and the others. We need to help them find the piece of heart-"

"My priority is your safety, Aya. I won't let him harm you. We have to keep moving, no matter what," Caleb said.

"The hell with my safety. Since when did my life matter over all these others? It's selfish and cruel," Aya said.

"Not in my eyes. It's actually selfless. Being here puts Sora and the others in danger. That's why we don't have a choice," Caleb retorted.

Aya closed her eyes and looked down. "But… I'm tired of running. I don't want this to be the rest of our lives. Living in fear."

"And even if you do run, there's no guarantee he won't keep finding you, right?" Sora asked. "Then there's no point in running. Knowing that he's just behind you is only gonna cause you more pain. We need to deal with him here and now."

"Are you crazy? I told you I'm not putting Aya in danger!" Caleb snapped.

"You really think you can protect her forever? Because sooner or later there'll come a time when you might not be able to keep an eye on her. All it takes is that one opportunity. Why allow it to come to that when you can deal with it head on?" Sora asked, his own anger rising. "He took Riku and Xion, he tortured them. If he finds you, he'll take you too, or worse. The four of us Keyblade Wielders together? We can take him."

"You don't know Janus like I do. He'll play mind games with you. That's not something I'm willing to afford," Caleb said. "Aya, we need to go-"

"Because you're a coward?"

"Sora?!" Luna called in shock but Sora refused to back down. He and Caleb stared at each other for a moment before Caleb finally spoke.

"If that makes you feel better, then sure, I'm a coward. Rather that than be foolish," Caleb said. "Aya, are you coming?"

"I…" Aya paused. Her eyes drifted to the wounded Fran and then Dipper. "I think that Sora is right. I won't allow others to get hurt through our own inaction. If there's something I can do to help, then I'll do it."

Caleb shook his head and proceeded to hide his expression behind his hands. Sora smiled at Aya before looking at Caleb. "So what do you say? Let's finish this here and now."

"Like I have any choice. I told Aya I'd protect her so… but just so you know, I still think this is incredibly stupid and reckless," Caleb said.

"Well it wouldn't be a Sora plan without being reckless," Luna said.

"And I thought you were on my side," Sora joked.

"You… better go with them," Fran said, causing Balthier to look down at her.

"Are you sure?" Balthier asked.

"It's… just a scratch. Rest is my best console right now," Fran told him. "I can stand to make it inside."

Balthier nodded and set Fran down. "I understand. Mabel, Dipper, I'm counting on you both to look after her."

"Sure thing. Uncle Ford might be able to help as well," Dipper said. He took Fran by one hand and Mabel with the other and led Fran inside.

Sora turned away from them and looked towards the forest which they had emerged from the night before. If he could finish this now then Riku wouldn't have to suffer. There would be no need for revenge. "Let's go."


	28. Vicarious Sin, Part 1

**A/N: So I had the greatest pleasure of getting the chance to witness the KH Orchestra World Tour Concert in London this past week, the first of which I hope is many to come. It feels really weird being that close to Yoko Shimomura. But yeah, if one's nearby you, definitely take the chance to see it. You won't regret it. Anyway, speaking of music, it's time to dance!**

* * *

Chapter 27

Vicarious Sin, Part 1

As they exited the forest, they soon came across the path leading upwards to the mountains. There was a more pressing matter however. Luna was the first to notice it and shook Sora's shoulders. Sora looked up at where Luna was pointing and his mouth parted slightly. In the sky, faint as though it may have been, was the shadow of something heart-shaped.

"Now that's a strange sight," Caleb murmured. "From here it almost looks like a mirage."

"I think it is," Aya said. "Kingdom Hearts… Caleb, it's Kingdom Hearts!"

"I know," Caleb replied. "This is what countless Keyblade Wielders fought and died for. It feels like I only saw it a few months ago, but that makes sense considering my consciousness was cut off from my body."

"When Kingdom Hearts appeared, it could be seen all over the world. Its appearance would spell the end of the world. That's what the Seeress Pandora predicted and it came true," Aya said.

"Pandora?" Luna asked. "Didn't expect that name to pop up anytime soon."

"You know her?" Aya asked.

"Not really. We found a letter written by her to someone else in a tomb somewhere," Luna explained. It wasn't just anyone either, Sora thought as he continued looking up at the sky, it was Kohle. He supposed he should try asking now that he had the opportunity to talk to people who had been in the war.

"Do you guys know someone named Kohle?" Sora asked.

"I… don't think so," Aya said, looking to Caleb with a questioning glance.

"Yeah, should we know him?" Caleb asked.

"No, it's nothing." Sora shook his head. He guessed if there was anyone who was going to give him answers, it would be from the man himself. He had to wonder though why he even cared. He had plenty of his own problems at the moment and he didn't need to make them even more complicated. If anything, the less he knew of Kohle the easier it would be to fight him if it came to that.

"Uh, it just disappeared, kupo!" Kupopo squirmed. Sora looked up to see that the mirage could no longer be seen.

"We need to find those heart pieces and quickly," Luna said. "But we're only at two out of seven and we have no idea how long it'll take us to find the others. Sora… do you think-"

"Of course we can. No matter how difficult the task, we have to overcome it. We have no right to complain when there are people who are suffering much worse than us right now. I have no right to complain when I'm the one who caused this," Sora said.

Luna giggled and nodded. "Yeah! Remember what Yeul said? We're the Warriors of Light. So let's protect the light, darn it."

Sora gave her a thumbs up and then looked towards the mountain. "Hope you guys like climbing."

"Oh, you know the answer to that," Luna groaned. Sora laughed and gestured for them to continue onward.

* * *

 ** _Conical Hill, Millhaven_**

Millhaven was a small town surrounded by pine trees but that only added to its strong community bonds, or at least that's what Astra experienced in her time there. Everyone seemed to know each other pretty well, something that was pretty much impossible in a city like Alexander.

A conversation with a banker lead her to a conversation with a school teacher which had led her to a conversation with the town's sheriff. Just on Main Street alone she had received more help and warmness than what anyone in Alexander could have probably given her. After asking about the Ringmaster and carefully avoiding the topic of a dragon, she found herself standing in front of the Millhaven Circus just on the outskirts of town.

She walked over to the gates of the circus and grabbed the padlock that was keeping the circus barred off from the rest of the world. Astra quickly unlocked it with her Keyblade and opened the gate only slightly so that she could squeeze through.

There were quite a few tents inside the circus and just as many pathways to take. If Astra had to guess, she would say the dragon would be in the biggest tent which would be to her right. She hurried over to the big top, a long red and white striped tent, and peered inside. The showiness and glamor of the circus revealed itself to her as she took in the wide open space with some awe. Spotting a pile of wooden crates on her left, she entered the tent and quickly made to hide behind them.

"I still can't believe it. An actual dragon? How in the world did you find something like this, daddy?" the ringmaster's assistant asked, slowly moving around the cage. The dragon was lying down and his face was out of Astra's view but she had no doubt of the pain and sadness it was going through.

"When you have as many connections as me, dumpling, the world is your oyster. We must prepare to open what will be the biggest show of our lives!" exclaimed the ringmaster. Astra assumed by the nickname he had given her that she was his daughter, which would have made sense given her youthful and child-like features.

"But are you sure about this, Mr. Gravelli? Controlling something like this… I'm not so sure. Doesn't it seem kind of angry?" asked someone who looked like a clown.

"We have some of the best trainers around. I guarantee you, we will get results by the end of the month," replied the Ringmaster.

"You won't even have that, you ass," Astra whispered. She watched as the group of circus members walked out of view before exiting from her cover and making her way towards the cage. She quickly checked to make sure no one else was around before walking to the front where the dragon could see her. "Don't worry. I'm going to get you out of here."

The dragon looked up and extended its head out towards her. She reached in between the bars and stroked his head for a while, causing the dragon to glow the same shimmering green it had before.

"You know what? I've done some thinking on my way here. It's not right that I find my family and friends if I can't help someone else find theirs. I'm going to help you find your family. You deserve that much," Astra said. She walked over to the gate at the front and pulled up the latch on both ends of the gate. She bent down and hooked her fingers around the grate, exerting force on her muscles in order to lift the gate up.

"Who are you?"

Astra let out a huff of annoyance and let go of the bars, turning around to see the Ringmaster's daughter. Astra imagined that, if the audience who came here weren't here to see the Ringmaster in action, then they were there to see his daughter. She was a young girl with flaxen hair and blue eyes. Though the stage lights shone and sparkled myriad dazzling colors, it was her who would be the greatest light of them all. That's what Astra felt as she herself became enamored by the girl's appearance, so much so that she had almost forgotten to reply.

"Ah, listen, you shouldn't be here right now and-"

"Are you trying to take our dragon? Dad said he found it as a present for me," the girl said. "I won't let you take it! Thieves aren't welcome at our circus."

"I wouldn't say that. Besides, am I really stealing it if you stole it in the first place?" Astra asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm sorry to tell you this but this dragon doesn't belong here. He belongs out in the wild, free like he was before your father captured him," Astra said.

"What? But daddy told he managed to tame it and bring it here," explained the girl.

It's in a cage you stupid- Astra cut her own thoughts off and calmed herself. The girl was young and Astra's impatience was just another reason she wasn't good with kids. Still, she imagined most kids would be quick to pick up that something was wrong based on the cage and the dragon's sad expression.

"I'm sorry, but what your dad's told you isn't true and I think you know that deep down as well," Astra said, hoping that maybe the girl was simply in denial. "Let me ask you question, sweetie." _Aaaaaaaand_ she wouldn't be doing that again any time soon. "What's your name?"

"I'm Grace. Grace Gravelli, the daughter of the greatest ringmaster on earth, Guglielmo Gravelli," she announced with a proud smile.

"Gooly- what the balls… whatever, I don't care. Listen, Grace, don't you think he deserves to be with his own kind? With his family?"

The girl averted her baby blue eyes from Astra and looked toward the dragon. Whether she was re-evaluating her kinship with her animals and realizing for the first time that the animals she trained may have stories just as tragic or even worse than the dragon's, or whether she was struggling with some inner conflict, Astra had time for neither. For all she knew, the ringmaster or one of his cronies could be arriving any time soon and she and the dragon needed to get far away from the circus before then. Because of this, Astra didn't wait for a response. She turned her back on the girl and went back to trying to pry open the gates.

"Wait a second. Daddy's coming back soon," Grace said, putting a hand on Astra's arm to stop her. "If he sees it missing he'll come after you right away."

"So what do you propose then?" asked Astra.

"Come back at night, say… seven? By then I'll have managed to get dad and the rest of the staff away from the tent and you'll be free to sneak in."

Astra thought about this for a moment before biting her lower lip and nodding. "Thank you."

Grace gave a smile revealing her pearly white teeth and beckoned for Astra to follow with her hands. "Here, you can stay in my room until its time. I have the perfect idea!"

* * *

They were almost to the apex of the mountain when they discovered an entry point that led them straight to a cave. Sora tried to look further in but all he could see was darkness from the entrance.

"Think he's in there?" Aya asked.

"Only one way to find out," Balthier replied. The group headed into the dark cave, lighting up their Keyblades in order to illuminate the area. The first thing they found as they went farther in was that the cave was home to the same Quartz crystals that they had found in the Nereid's Cave on their way to Gravity Falls.

"Beautiful…" Aya said, holding her Keyblade up to one of the stones to look at her reflection. "Ooh, Caleb, can I have one? Can I have one?"

"What do I look like, a miner?" Caleb asked. "Let's keep going. I'm not sure I like this silence."

The group soon reached an open space within the cave to find it already lit by torches. Also in the room near the back was a boombox sitting on top of a giant rock.

"Janus' work?" Sora asked.

"Or something else," Balthier said. The sky pirate walked over to the walls and gently dragged his fingers across the wall, pausing to take notice of the indentations of claw marks he had found. He looked back at the group to tell them off his discovery but a furrowed brow took over his curious expression upon seeing the shadow behind them. His hand made for the gun in his holster. "Aya, behind you!"

Aya spun around and screamed as an unusual creature swung at her head. She tripped and fell backwards with the creature's arms swinging over her. It was a bear, albeit not one they had ever seen before with eight heads and a dozen limbs on its body.

Kupopo flew forward to check if Aya was alright before looking at the others. "I think we just invaded its home, kupo!"

"Janus disturbed it first," Sora said. "Hey, we don't want to hurt you, okay? We just want back what's ours."

The bear heads all let out a synchronous roar causing the group to cover their ears. Sora took Aya's wrist and quickly dragged her back.

"Yeah… somehow I get the feeling he doesn't want to make friends right now," Sora said.

"That's fine by me," Caleb said, summoning his Keyblade Indra's Calm. Sora had to admire the Keyblade for a moment, even if they were up against an imposing threat. It was green and yellow in theming with its length zigzagging up as a yellow lightning bolt and the head a green cyclone.

Aya summoned her own Keyblade next, simply called Mhaya. It was a beautiful sea blue which had its end shaped like a fish hook. "Let's do this, Mhaya. Guys, it doesn't matter how many heads this thing has. We're gonna deal with 'em one by one if we have to and make minced meat out of them."

"Okay, I don't even want to imagine what it's like to eat bear meat so how about we not do that," Luna replied while summoning Dream Seeker.

"Hey, you're travelling all by yourselves, right? Who knows when you might be forced to do something you never thought you'd do. It's survival 101," Caleb said.

"Yeah right. I'd sooner eat my dog Pascal's food than risk my neck hunting a bear," Sora said. Caleb ran forward and ducked underneath one of the Multi-Bear's swiping arms and swung upwards, striking the creature and sending it backwards. With Caleb knelt low to the ground, Aya ran and jumped onto his shoulder launching her into the air.

"Things are about to get grizzly for you, bear!" she yelled as her Keyblade slammed down on the middle of the bear's heads. She landed back on the ground before swinging upwards, unleashing a burst of wind that launched the Multi-Bear into the air.

Luna cartwheeled past Aya and Caleb before jumping into the air and smashing the Multi-Bear back to the ground. "Hmm, that pun was pawssable at best, Aya."

"Oh, for the love of…" Caleb rolled his eyes and grimaced.

"Hehe, I see what you did there. 'Fur' the love of…? Nice one!" Sora joined in with a big grin on his face.

"I can't believe I'm stuck with a bunch of children," Caleb murmured with a shake of his head. Out of nowhere, the Multi-Bear jumped in between him and the others and swung its razor sharp claws. Unable to evade in time, Aya could only raise her arms in defence and screamed in pain as the claws dug into her left arm.

"AYA!" Everyone yelled. Aya backed away to Balthier and clutched her arm and pursed her mouth shut in an attempt to null the pain.

Caleb turned his attention back to the enemy once more with an angry glint in his eyes and then headed in to attack again, this time with Sora. The bear charged forward but Sora rolled out of the way while Caleb sideflipped. Sora pivoted quickly and struck when he was behind the bear, knocking him forward so that Caleb could deliver a diagonal strike from the Multi-Bear's right shoulder to its lower left side.

The bear fell backwards, its faces landing in front of Sora. It was as Caleb raised his Keyblade in an attempt to finish off the Multi-Bear that Sora noticed something weird with its eyes. Its pupils were a milky white, and although it could have easily been one of the many features of this strange creature he had never seen before, it still didn't sit right with Sora.

"Wait. Stop!" Sora yelled, thrusting his Oblivion Keyblade forward to intercept Caleb's attack.

"The hell? Why'd you do that?" Caleb asked, seemingly frustrated by Sora's meddling.

"Something isn't right here. I don't think he's doing this of his own will," Sora said.

"What's that supposed to mean? How do you know that?" Caleb asked. Sora forced down his irritation and looked down to the bear's heads instead.

"His eyes. It's something about them. Luna, you can see it, right?" Sora asked, motioning for her to come over. Luna caressed Aya's shoulders and gave her a nod before walking over to Sora. It didn't take her long to examine the bear before confirming with a nod that she understood what he meant.

"I don't have the ability to see a Chimera's true form anymore, and I doubt it would work on this guy since he isn't one, but I definitely think there's something wrong with him. Janus might have manipulated him somehow," Luna said.

"Your point being?" Caleb asked.

Sora frowned. "What?"

"That's all the more reason to put this thing out of its misery then. I won't let it hurt Aya anymore or you guys for that matter," Caleb said. "Don't worry. If you can't bring yourself to do it, then you don't have to. You don't even have to watch."

Why was it so easy for Caleb to say something like this? Was it past experience talking? All those times he had to take a life, be it for himself or for Aya must have surely hardened him. It would be easy for Sora to travel down the same path. It would be so easy because… in the same way that Caleb cared for Aya, he cared for Luna. But rather than looking at extremes, there had to be a middle ground somewhere. He wouldn't be like Caleb, because he knew that wasn't what Luna would want.

"No. I won't let you do it," Sora refused.

"Do you understand what you're saying?" Caleb asked, stepping up to Sora probably in hopes that his taller stature might intimidate Sora into backing down. Sora stayed firmly in place and looked directly into Caleb's eyes.

"I do. If it's being manipulated then that means there's a chance it can be saved. I don't know how it worked in your world and I don't care but in this new one, we don't give up just because things look gloomy at first sight. As long as even a single person believes in the cause they're fighting for then there's always hope. If that bear even has a shred of his old self still inside then we'll keep fighting until we bring that side of him back out," Sora said. He glanced sideways at Luna who smiled at him warmly.

"You'd risk your friends' lives over trying to reform something that might be a lost cause?" Caleb asked. "I'm sorry, but that's just not how the real world works. There's a time when enough is enough. If you think you owe it to yourself to keep trying, you'll only find yourself disappointed by humanity. That's a constant cycle I cannot afford to live by. Sorry."

Caleb attempted to swing again, but Sora was quick and fired of a jolt of thunder which zapped Caleb's hand and disarmed him. Caleb gritted his teeth and glared at Sora who seemed unfazed by this reaction. Shaking his head, Caleb whipped around and took back off in the direction they had come from.

"Caleb? Caleb, come back!" Aya yelled. Caleb stopped and looked to his side.

"Are you coming Aya?" he asked. She shook her head. Sora couldn't see the expression on Caleb's face but he could easily imagine it being one of disappointment. With that, he left, leaving an uncomfortable aura in his wake.

Aya took a few steps forward while clutching her arm. "Caleb…"

"Let him go, Aya. I doubt he'll leave you alone for long. He'll be back," Sora said. At least, he hoped Aya was enough to convince him to turn back. There was no doubting that Caleb would be a valuable asset if they were to take on Janus.

Hearing growling, Sora looked down at the Multi-Bear to see it slowly getting back up. "Did you hear me? I won't give up on you. I know you're in there somewhere."

Once the Multi-Bear had managed to fully stand up and shake off its apparent dizziness, it lunged for Sora. Sora somersaulted over him and drop kicked the bear from his back, sending it stumbling forward. Luna transformed her Keyblade into a Bo Staff. She spun it around quickly and executed several overhead strikes with the weapon, knocking the Multi-Bear off its feet and sending it rolling into the wall behind it.

"Way to go, Luna!" Sora laughed as Luna posed with the staff behind her. They looked over to the Multi-Bear who was getting back up from the attack. "Please tell me it's on our side now."

This time, the bear galloped towards Sora and swept off his feet. Sora flew backwards into Luna, sending the both of them down. As the bear lumbered towards them, Aya moved in between them and deflected the bear's incoming paw away.

"Bad! Bad bear!" Aya pointed at him, managing to keep her stance while at the same time grasping her injured left arm with her right hand. The Multi-Bear backed away at this with a surprised look on its faces. "That's right. Now sit!"

The bear immediately carried out the command. Sora stared on perplexed for what seemed like a good while before shooting a look at Luna. "That was easy."

"Too easy," Luna replied. "But I'll take it. Maybe we're getting through to him. I don't suppose you were an animal tamer in a past life, were you, Aya?"

"Actually, I'm just hoping this doesn't backfire," Aya said, keeping her eyes on the bear while speaking. She walked over to the back of room where the boombox was and pressed the play button. She started bobbing her head to the song and looked at Luna. "Hey, isn't this song pretty good? Dance with me, guys."

"What?" Sora asked, completely dumbfounded by her request. Aya skipped over to him and grabbed his hands.

"We must dance! Dance with me!" Aya commanded, nodding her head in the direction of the bear. Sora looked at it to see it also moving its head back and forth to the disco rhythm. It was… enjoying it?

"It's a pretty funky beat. Come on, Sora, Balthier!" Luna joined, stepping from side to side and clapping along with the rhythm.

"I can't believe this is saving us. I won't," Balthier replied. Nonetheless he complied. If Luna's dancing could be described as energetic, Balthier's was anything but. He even had a look on his face that screamed 'stop the world, I want to get off'.

As they moved to Aya's rhythm of "One, two, three, _clap_ ", they could see that the bear was starting to snap out of its hypnosis. It swooned from side to side, jerking its heads every now and then as one does when they're trying to stay awake.

"It's working! It's really working!" Luna announced excitedly, adding some pirouettes in between her sidesteps.

"Ooh, that's pretty fancy, Luna," Aya commended as she finger pointed along with Sora.

"Thanks. I took a few ballet lessons back in the day," Luna told her.

A few seconds later, the Multi-Bear stopped nodding its head and let out a groan. "What… happened to me?"

"We did it!" Aya jumped up and down with Sora.

"You mean you did! How did you know that would work?" he asked.

"I didn't. I hoped," Aya replied.

Luna ran over to the bear and after checking its eyes knelt down. "How do you feel?"

"Probably the same way the wolf felt after the woodcutter cut granny out of him," the Multi-Bear answered. His eyes glazed over Aya's injury for a moment before asking, "Did I do that?"

"It's okay. You weren't yourself," Aya said as she made to cover her arm again. "Do you remember what happened?"

"I… I remember that I was just waking up after taking a nap when I spotted someone over there, by the boombox. Terrible music started playing and that's when I lost consciousness. I'm sorry, I don't remember much after that," the Multi-Bear said.

"The music… right, there was another cassette tape in the radio when I swapped it with the other one," Aya said. Sora walked over to the boombox and took up the cassette tape, flipping it around to read the label.

"'PWQUBBQBCBVRYTWNAMMR=XION?' What's this supposed to mean?" asked a bemused Sora, his eyes almost bulging out of their sockets.

"Oh, I think I heard BBQ in there. Is there a barbeque, kupo?" Kupopo asked.

"Yeah, no, that's not likely," Luna dismissed. She turned to look at the Multi-Bear. "You don't mind if we take that tape for further analysis, do you?"

"No objection from me. Keep that infernal thing far away from my home, thank you very much. And I should thank you for saving me and in such style at that. Truly, I have never seen such complex dance moves since, well, the "Disco Girl" music video. It's my favorite song," the Multi-Bear told them.

"I guess we should really be thanking BABBA then," Aya said. "I'll be sure to buy more of their albums in appreciation."

"We think the perpetrator might still be here," Sora said after pocketing the cassette tape. "Is it alright with you if we head farther in?"

"Of course. You're welcome to come visit any time you like," replied the Multi-Bear.

"We'll try," Sora said. He very much doubted they would be coming back this way again what with their important mission but the last thing he wanted after helping the bear was to let it down again.

"If only Caleb were here. He gave up too soon," Luna said. Aya sighed and looked back to the entrance they had come from. Sora watched from afar before walking up to her and placing a hand on her shoulder. He wouldn't force her to go ahead if she didn't want to. Both of them knew that if Janus was up ahead then it would only get harder from here on out. Still, there was fire burning in Aya's brown eyes. Those eyes brimming with determination was all he needed to know her thoughts on the matter.

Sora let his hand drop to his side and looked towards the path at the back of the room that led deeper in.

* * *

 ** _Mountain Trail, Gravity Falls_**

With some difficulty, Caleb managed to make his way back down the uneven mountain and let out a massive sigh of relief only when he finally touched level ground. He was about to continue on but something stopped him. He turned around to see the mountain he had come from, a gargantuan reminder of what he had left behind.

Aya… no, even Sora, Luna, Kupopo and Balthier, he had abandoned them when they had probably needed him most. Going against Janus was a fool's folly—that much he was sure of, but leaving by Aya behind was he not also responsible for anything that happened to her?

"What am I doing? How could I leave you behind?" Caleb asked. Now that his anger had calmed, all that was left on the surface was guilt. He hadn't realized it until now but with each step he took away from the mountain, he could feel his heart tugging in the opposite direction.

 _Flashback_

" _Do you have any fives?" Caleb asked as he looked down at his own hand._

" _Go fish," Aya said with a shake of head. Caleb drew another card from the deck. A queen. He placed it among the six cards he already had and looked back up. Other than their voices, all they could hear was the soft crackle of flames from the fire they had made and the occasional chirping of crickets somewhere in the trees._

" _Do you have… any queens?"_

 _Caleb almost spluttered with laughter. "You have a strange intuition when it comes to this stuff, don't you?"_

" _Yup, I have ESP. Call me Mystic Aya," Aya said, drilling her index fingers into her temples._

" _Oh do tell me what's in my future then, wise Mystic Aya?" Caleb said, handing the card over._

" _Hmm, I see in your future a peaceful one, one where you don't have to worry about looking after others, after the balance of light and dark, after me. You can do whatever you want and the first thing you decide to do is fulfil your lifelong dream of establishing your own restaurant chain. Your food will be known far and wide and you'll be the pride of whichever town you decide to settle in. A great place for the family supported by a beautiful wife and two little tykes. That's what I see for you."_

" _Wow, you're worse that I thought," Caleb said._

" _Huh? I thought I did well. I mean, I'm not exactly Seer material but still, isn't that what you'd want?" Aya asked._

" _What I want and what I need are two different things. I could never forget about you, Aya, or anyone that needed my help. I might not be able to set up a restaurant like I'd dreamed of doing, but you're way more important than some silly dream," Caleb said._

" _Don't call your dreams silly," Aya said._

 _Caleb shook his head. "But it's true. You're right here in front of me. That dream for all I know is far away or may not happen at all. I have to protect what matters to me and that starts right here and right now. Say, what about your dreams, Aya?"_

" _Ooh, nice deflection, buddy," Aya said with a grin._

" _Huh? No, I was just-" But Aya's chortle caught him off guard. "Whatever. You have threes?"_

" _Oh, come on, I was just bantering around. Here, you finally got me," Aya said, handing over two cards with a value of three. "As for my dreams. Let's just say… I wish for a world where you didn't have to fight for my sake."_

 _End Flashback_

"Maybe I should go back..." Caleb said. He nodded to himself and was about to start walking again when he heard something behind him. He spun around and his eyes widened at the sight of Janus walking up to him. Caleb took a few steps back and looked back at the mountain. "Wait, but then-"

"It's a trap?" Janus finished for him with a smile.

* * *

 **A/N: So can the group recover the journal before it's too late? What will happen to Caleb and what of the fate of Astra's dragon friend? Find out next time on Paved With Gold and thanks for reading once again.**


	29. Vicarious Sin, Part 2

**A/N: So I managed to finish Persona 5 in this long break that I took (sorry for making you wait). Great game, definitely improved over 3 and 4 in terms of gameplay though sometimes it just became a drag when it came to repetitive dialogue and verbose explanations. I definitely think they should re-invent the series a bit for the next installment, though that's just my opinion. Anyway, let's get back into the thick of it, shall we?**

* * *

Chapter 28

Vicarious Sin, Part 2

Aya's silence became more noticeable the farther they travelled into the cave. After having just saved them, Sora would have expected her to be livelier. Then again, he could hardly ask that of her given how difficult it must have been to just watch as a friend walked away. No matter how much she may have wished to follow, her heart was in another place entirely. Which begged the question anyway: just what was their relationship?

"Hey, Aya," Sora broke the uneasy silence between them that had started not too long after they had saved the Multi-Bear. "What are you and Caleb anyway? Friends or…"

"Ah, _nonono_ we're just friends. What gives you that impression anyway?" Aya asked.

"I mean it really isn't that hard to assume. You're either brother and sister and I can tell you now that is certainly not likely or, like I said, you're a couple or just really good friends. Also, Caleb seems really protective of you," Sora said. He stopped and placed his hands behind his head, offering a trademark grin. "Maybe he likes you."

"No, I don't think so… you think so?" Aya asked.

"I mean, it could just be that he sees you as a little sister. I'm not really the best person when it comes to picking up on subtle undertones. Luna can attest to that," Sora said.

Luna gave a playful nod. "Yep-yep. I think you and Caleb would make a great pair, Aya."

"Eh, I'm not too sure about that. I'm just not ready to have a relationship yet. With anyone. I'm just the kind of person that likes to play around but if I've been giving him the wrong impression, I want to make that clear to him."

"Romance can't be rushed. It's like brandy. The longer the wine is left to distil, the greater the flavor. Besides, if he has expectations based on your time spent together he has only himself to blame. In time, you'll find the right man or woman," Balthier said.

"Thanks, Balthier. I bet you've been in plenty of relationships. How would you rate those women on a scale of vodka to bourbon?" Aya asked. This elicited a laugh from Sora and Luna and an annoyed grunt from Balthier. It was good to know that the mood had not quite been sullied yet.

It was once they reached another room deep within the mountains that they knew their journey had come to an end. The first reason was that there was nowhere to go farther in from where they were currently. The second happened to be right on top of them.

"There it is," Luna whispered, looking up at the Pterodactyl Wraith. It was perched atop an elevated cliff in the room that looked like it could be accessed from the slope to the side of them.

"Looks like it's sleeping. So all we have to do is sneak in, find the book and leave," Sora whispered while pounding his closed fist into his left palm.

"Sounds like a plan to me. I'd rather not have to-"

"Ow! Watch where you're standing, kupo!"

The group quickly turned to shush Kupopo who had carelessly bumped into Balthier through what Sora suspected was Kupopo falling behind after being too engrossed by Quartz Crystals in the cave.

" _Let me go_!"

Sora ceased up and looked over to the cliff. The Pterodactyl was staring right back at them, its bony wings outstretched majestically. It was only then that Sora could see that there was iron plate armor covering the Pterodactyl's body and head.

"It can talk?" Luna asked.

"When Caleb and I encountered this thing yesterday, it said the same thing then too. Kind of like it was on a recording or something. 'Let me go'," Aya said.

" _Pl-pl-please let me go_. _I can't take it anym-m-m-more. Let me go! Pl-pl-please DIE!"_

The Pterodactyl let out a screech and took off from its resting spot. Opening its mouth, the Wraith shot a beam of red light at them. Sora quickly summoned the Kingdom Key and held it up, the beam hitting the blade's length causing it to tremble violently. Sora gripped the handle tightly slashed downward, deflecting the laser and sending it into the back wall.

Sora recovered his breath, brought the Keyblade back to his side and said, "Okay, time to take this Pterodactyl back to the Stone Age."

"Err, technically Pterodactyl's are from the Triassic to the Cretaceous period. No Stone Age," Luna corrected.

Sora scoffed at this and looked at Luna. "Whatever. Let's just kick some dino-butt and be done with this—that sound better?"

"Now that, I can agree with," Luna said. The Pterodactyl took off from the rock and flew towards them, forcing the group to split. Sora rolled out of the way and changed into Wisdom Form, using Wisdom Shot to get in a few hits in at the flying Wraith.

 _Damn, it's fast!_ Sora thought, watching as the Pterodactyl evaded each of the projectiles. It turned sharply and headed towards Sora who quickly transformed in to Master Form and jumped out of the way before transforming into Final Form.

"Whoa! That is awesome!" Aya yelled from below as she watched Sora and the Pterodactyl battle it out above them.

"That's Sora for you. Always has to show off," Luna replied with a smile of admiration.

"Well, let's not just stand here and have him upstage us. Let's show him what we girls can do," Aya said. As the two were moving in to attack from below, Sora found himself pushed backwards into a wall by the Wraith who lunged forwards to attack again. Sora parried the bird's head with the Kingdom Key before kick diving off the rock and gliding away from the Pterodactyl. As it followed him, the Keyblades left his side and shot forward like ranged projectiles, piercing the Pterodactyl's body armor and knocking it back.

Meanwhile, Aya propelled herself forward and upward using Tornado. She positioned herself behind the Pterodactyl and transformed her Keyblade into a giant shuriken before throwing it. Luna aimed upwards at the shuriken and, leaning her shot ahead of it, cast Thunder. The spell hit the Shuriken causing it to crackle with electricity just before it hit the Pterodactyl.

The resulting explosion rocked the room, knocking the Pterodactyl down to a lower altitude of flight. Luna sideflipped out of the creature's way and cast Ragnorok, shooting forth a cluster of energy that bombarded the Pterodactyl and sent it crashing down. Balthier lined up his pistol and fired, the bullet smacking the Pterodactyl's face to the side.

Sora glided past it and transformed into Valor form. With both Oblivion and Oathkeeper in hand, he proceeded to jump strike with both Keyblades, using one to keep his body off the ground while using the other Keyblade to fall backwards and strike the head.

After four hits from Sora's alternating attacks, the Pterodactyl swiped at him with its winged arm catching Oblivion and knocking it out of the ground. Without Oblivion on ground supporting his weight, Sora's next attack with Oathkeeper flopped and he was sent falling to the ground. From up close, the Pterodactyl seemed almost elegant and graceful in its movement to Sora. Of course, it was in fact about to bite his head off so he wasn't about to relax just yet.

"Back off!" Aya yelled before Sora could cast some magic out of his hand. She jumped to the Pterodactyl's side and delivered a front flip kick, driving her foot down towards its head.

"Gravity!" Luna cast, directing Dream Seeker at Aya's foot. The foot slammed into the Pterodactyl with incredible force and sent it straight into the ground, creating a mini crater in the process.

After Aya found that she could move her foot again, she stepped to away to see that the armor on the Pterodactyl's head had completely shattered.

"Deep Freeze!" Aya cast. A blast of ice blew out of her Keyblade's tip, freezing the Pterodactyl's head. Sora and Luna moved in and simultaneously executed a Zantetsuken, leaving an X-shaped trail in their wake. The block of ice shattered and the Pterodactyl let out a weak cry before collapsing. A purple outline formed around its body before the creature turned into dust.

"This dust… it's really pretty! Well, in a 'I just defeated a boss to get this' kind of way," Aya said.

"I know, right? In fact, it kind of makes me feel like… ah, AH, AAAA-"

"It is totally not making you sneeze," Sora said to Luna.

"Well, ex-squeeze you. Sora, I don't think you should impose your own standards of what causes and doesn't cause a sneeze on others. That's authoritarian," Luna said, feigning an unimpressed look on her face.

"Authoritarian? But I don't write books," Sora said.

"Luna, he out-joked your joke," Aya replied with a mock look of shock.

"The joke can't be out-joked if it was a terrible one to begin with," Luna said.

"Strangely enough, now that you mention it. I never realized that that word is comprised of two of my favorite things: authors and librarians," Luna said.

"Librarians are authoritarians. Sounds about right," Sora said.

Aya seemed to have a look of genuine surprise on her face before she started laughing. "Aha, oh wow. That is true, isn't it? I remember the librarian in the academy Caleb and I used to go to. She was… an absolute nightmare to deal with. If you even returned a book late just once, she would hold a grudge against you that felt like it could last a lifetime."

"Now that you bring up Caleb, I wish he was here to share in the moment with us," Luna said. Her face suddenly turned anxious, as if she feared that this would dampen the silly atmosphere they had created.

Aya seemed to acknowledge this with a sad smile but then looked around. "Didn't we come here for something?"

"Indeed, and while you three were having the time of your lives, Kupopo and I retrieved it," Balthier said, showing them the journal. "There's a three on it. I think it's safe to presume there are at least two more like it."

"Ooh, want to take a peek?" Luna asked, skipping over to Balthier. Taking the book from his hands she took one good look at it and immediately frowned.

"Something wrong?" Sora asked.

"It just feels like a really weird book. I've never come across something like this before," Luna said as she opened up the journal. Displayed on its pages were flora and fauna the likes of which she had never seen before. An amused smile took over her features as she flipped through the book. "What is this? Stomach Faced Duck, a Plaidypus, Gremloblin… this is pretty funny. Whoever did this seems really creative."

"Strange…" Sora said. He walked over to Luna and looked over her shoulder. Aside from animals and plants, the journal also mentioned places like secret caves and forests with eyes. It all seemed so bizarre, so inconceivable. "This is what Janus was after? Why?"

"Wait a second…" Luna's hands stopped moving, having spotted a familiar sight. It was the Gnomes, including an entire description on where they lived, how they operated and how they needed a queen to tell them what to do. "I don't think this is made up."

"Then all these things are in this town somewhere? They're all exclusive to Gravity Falls?" Sora asked.

"Well, it's not the only case we've seen something like this, right? Monstropolis also had some pretty interesting characters like Sully and Mike," Luna said.

"What say you we get out of this musty cave, hmm? I'm sure Dapper will be pleased to know we've recovered his journal," Balthier said.

" _Dapper_? Balthier, you so silly," Aya replied with a child-like grin. "But he's right. Let's go ladies."

" _Haha_ , very funny," Sora remarked dryly. He attempted to look away from the book, but when Luna's fingers endeavoured to move to the next page, he gave up entirely, his eyes fixated on what was displayed on it. Something that shouldn't have been there, something that was clearly not native to Gravity Falls, was right there in front of him. His mind fell back to the tomb he, Luna and Shantotto had found in DunBroch and from there the pieces lined up. There was no mistake. It was the same eye that had been embedded on the tomb. "The Eye of Horus. Horus' symbol? What's this doing here?"

Luna shrugged and flipped the page hoping for more information on the back however the content was completely different. "There's just a bunch of question marks on surrounding it. I guess this was the one thing the person who made this couldn't find anything on. It's certainly an enigma."

"You're with Horus, aren't you? Or were with, I should say. Do you know anything about this?" Sora asked, looking up at Aya after snapping out of his confusion.

"Well, the Eye of Horus is supposed to represent judgement. It's like what you find on tarot cards really. It represents an awakening of your true self after a period of self-evaluation, and it was only through reaching that enlightenment that absolution would come. Release from guilt, from sin, from obligation. Not just for the individual but the world at large. That's what we were taught at the academy," Aya explained.

"Sounds like a bunch of hocus-pocus to me," Balthier said. "And I should point out that Janus wasn't here. He must have expected us to come after him. Well, it's a moot point now I suppose. We needed to retrieve the book after all, though I am suspicious as to why he didn't take it."

With an unsolved, no, two unsolved mysteries hanging over their heads, the group were forced to head back for the entrance of the cave. Despite Balthier being able to dismiss it so easily, Sora couldn't help but be worried about Janus' next move. He had even told Dipper that he would come back for Caleb and Aya soon. He had also apparently wanted the journal and would surely have reached the mountain before them. The Multi-Bear had clearly showed signs of being manipulated so there was no doubt that Janus had passed by either, but if that was the case then why had he not just taken the book?

It all led to one answer. The only possible reason Sora could think of was that because Janus had wanted them to see the journal, maybe even a certain page in particular.

* * *

 ** _Millhaven Circus_**

 ** _Evening_**

From her uncomfortable position within the box filled with props, Astra could hear a parrot squawking nearby. On her way to Grace Gravelli's room, she had seen many other animals as well. Two monkeys, a tiger, a bear and even a few elephants, though there could have easily been more in another tent and Astra wouldn't have been surprised.

When raising the point about the animals being forced to perform demanding and inhumane tasks, this didn't seem to faze Grace who had been in the circus all her life. Astra supposed she couldn't blame Grace for her innocence but she couldn't understand how or why Grace was happy that she lived such a contained life. Then again, it had not been too long that Astra had longed for such a contained life. The only thing stopping her from going back to it was responsibility and a missing friend.

 _It must be getting close to the meeting time. Where is she?_ Astra thought with her eyes closed. The box she was in was uncomfortable but there was a sweet fragrance coming from it that reminded her of her grandmother's room. It had remained a hobby for her, trying out different perfumes and fragrances, right up until the day she died.

"Wish I could talk with you, gran. I wish those simpler times were back," Astra whispered. Her eyes opened as she felt a draft coming in from above. Looking down on her was a youthful golden ray of hope.

"It's safe," Grace confirmed with a bright beam.

"Oh thank the light. For a moment there, I had thought you'd forgotten about me," Astra said.

"I'm still young, you know? My memory's not gone yet," Grace said. Astra got out of the box and headed towards the door, still blinking from the sudden exposure to light. The two of them stepped outside to the main room of the tent where all the animals were being kept, though Astra's attention was focused on only one. Upon seeing Astra, the dragon seemed to exert more energy than she had ever seen from it by letting out several cries. It seemed… disturbed by something.

"What's wrong?" Astra asked, running toward him. She reached the cages and pressed her hands against the bar when it happened. A jolt of electricity was sent running through her body. Her muscles twitched and convulsed as she lost complete control of them, unbearable pain shot up through her arms and she could feel a burning sensation in her chest. She wanted to pry her hands away from the bars, but her fingers would not work. She couldn't will her body to do anything.

It was the dragon that saved the day by head-butting the cage, knocking Astra away from the bar and sending her to the floor. An incredibly numb Astra struggled to regain control of her limbs, and it was only through time that she came to find that her body was her own once again.

"What the hell?"

Just then a bright light materialized, robbing Astra of her vision. She held one hand above her eyes while trying to adjust to the blinding light.

"You didn't think you would be able to get away with it that easy, did you?" Grace declared from above. Astra thought she could detect a sinister aura exuding from the girl at that very moment, and suddenly her angel-like appearance didn't seem so hypnotizing.

"What are you playing at?" Astra asked, her voice slightly hoarse.

"Playing? I'll have you know I never play when it comes to family matters, and everyone at the circus is my family. I won't let you take my dragon away from me!" Grace yelled. She turned away from Astra and looked over to her father who came into view, twirling his handlebar moustache.

"That's my Grace. Isn't she wonderful?" he said with a smile revealing all his perfectly punchable teeth.

"You selfish little brat," Astra spat. The Ringmaster walked over to her and raised his right foot, placing his boot on her face.

"Do you know why people come to the circus?" the Ringmaster asked.

"Honestly, no. If I wanted a circus I'd just go into politics instead," Astra replied.

The Ringmaster laughed and eased up on Astra, although what little pressure he had was still enough to keep Astra firmly in place. "Isn't that true? No, the reason people come to the circus is to be entertained, to be dazzled. No one wants to see the same trick twice. You always want to keep your customers coming back and to do that you need something that can blow their expectations away. And to think it only took a flying elephant to make me realize how important the surreal can be in attracting the mundane."

"And a dragon doesn't come along every day, right? Oh spare me the nonsense. You can take your lame spectacles and shove 'em up your ass! He's not a part of your circus and he doesn't want to be," Astra said.

"I don't really think you're in the best position to be telling what should and should not be in my circus, hm?" the Ringmaster raised his cigar to his mouth and inhaled, taking a long drag before exhaling.

Astra's let out a grin underneath the man's foot and gave a slight chuckle. "Easy on the smoking, old man. Wouldn't want to die of lung cancer before I've killed you myself."

"Ooh, I'm absolutely quaking in my boots!" the Ringmaster feigned, doing a little jiggle. It was the dragon's roar from the cage nearby that caused the Ringmaster to jump in fright and back away.

With additional effort, Astra managed to help herself up before summoning her Keyblade. With anger in her eyes, she glared at the Ringmaster and his daughter and gripped Midnight Mauve tightly to the point where it was digging into her palms.

"You profit off of others' suffering. You can lie to yourselves but don't lie to me. You don't care about the happiness of those who come to see your shows, only the money they'll bring. I've known people like you. My own city is full of snobby a-holes like you that could stand to profit off those who were worse off. People like you… are nothing but scum!" Astra yelled, advancing towards them. The Ringmaster squirmed and ran behind his daughter, trying to shrink as much as possible.

"Daddy! What are you doing? You're going to let her scare you?" Grace asked. Astra reached them and pushed Grace aside before grabbing the Ringmaster's collar.

"Open that damn gate now or I swear to darkness I will deprive you of every single thing that makes you a man!" Astra threatened.

The Ringmaster gave a rapid nodded and then gestured for Astra to put him down. When she did, albeit slowly as if to make a point of daring him to try something, he dug into his pocket and pulled out a square remote control device with a dial on it. When he turned the dial left, a sound could be heard coming from the cage as if something had just been shut down.

"Now hand me the remote then open the cage," Astra instructed, keeping her Keyblade pointed at him. The Ringmaster seemed hesitant to do so despite her yelling prompting Astra to shot a fire projectile at his feet. He squeaked and handed over the remote before running towards the cage.

"Daddy, you can't let her take my dragon away!" Grace screamed. Astra glanced at her before raising a finger to her lips.

"Shush, little girl. It's grown up time," Astra said, not missing out on the irony of her words. Astra watched as Guglielmo worked with quick speed to pull up the latches of the cage before bringing up the cage. The first thing the dragon did was lunge at him with its jaws open, resulting in the Ringmaster letting out a shrill cry for his life.

"Woah, woah!" Astra moved away from Grace and held up her hands at the dragon. "It's okay. You don't need to retaliate. Let's put this behind us and go home, okay?"

Hearing her voice, the dragon soothed its raging state and a calm demeanour took precedence once more, something that was quite deceptive and even made Astra want to relax until she remembered that they weren't out of the woods yet.

She looked back at Guglielmo and Grace and stuck her tongue out at them. Perhaps it was immature but Astra wasn't sure she cared. For the moment, success was like diving into a pool of ambrosia. Being placed at a disadvantage and overcoming it had always been a guilty pleasure of hers. She had always seen herself as an underdog and it was within her interests to remain so.

"Don't follow us," Astra warned while backing away. She ran towards the entrance of the tent with the dragon following behind with big heavy plods. Astra sped out to the long-awaited cool night air with the dragon tearing through the tent's fabric due to his size. "Darn it! Wish we had a ride right about now and you're too injured to fly, right? Even if I had a driver's licence, there's still the problem of a-heeeello." Astra's eyes fell on a truck nearby with its trailer unloaded off the truck's dolly. She ran over to the truck and opened the door before looking to the dragon. "Hop on the back. It's not exactly comfortable but we can get farther this way."

The dragon obeyed and Astra hopped into the driver's seat and closed the door. She quickly found the ignition. No keys, not that she had expected there to be any. It was fine anyway. She could do one better.

The engine roared to life and she set her Midnight Mauve Keyblade on the passenger seat before gripping on to the wheel with both hands.

"I may not have a license, but I'm sure it can't be too difficult. At least it looks easy in the movies," Astra said to herself before putting her foot on the gas.

* * *

 ** _The Mystery Shack_**

 ** _Gravity Falls_**

On their way back to the solitary gift ship, Sora and the others were unable to find Caleb. They would soon find that the same fate awaited them upon reaching the Mystery Shack. Balthier was first to open the door to be greeted by two newcomers. The first was a rather big guy wearing a light brown cap and a blue shirt with a large black question mark on it. The other was a tall, skinny girl around their age with green eyes, freckles and red hair covered by a lumberjack hat.

"Hey there, dudes and dudettes. Welcome to the Mystery Shack? I'm afraid our tour's cancelled for today but you can come back tomorrow," the guy suggested.

"Fran… where is she?" Balthier asked, moving to the back of the room.

"Oh, you're the guys who were with her then," the girl realized. She propped the broom in her hands straight up and smiled at them. "Don't worry, she's doing fine at the moment. Kind of a weird gal though. Does she do cosplay?"

"Nah, it's a bit more complicated than that. Thanks for looking after her though. I'm Sora and this is Luna, Aya, Balthier and Kupopo," Sora introduced them.

"Woah, this plushie looking marshmallow is pretty rad," the girl said, looking at Kupopo who seemed annoyed by this designation. "I'm Wendy and this is Soos."

"Excuse me, I'm not a marshmallow, kupo. I'm the lovable mascot of the team," Kupopo declared with folded arms.

"You're a nuisance is what you are," Sora muttered.

"Hey, that was uncalled for, kupo!" Kupopo yelled, inciting an exchange of the two glaring daggers at each other.

Aya laughed before asking, "On another note, is a boy named Caleb here?"

"No, no one's come by before you dudes arrived," Soos said. "Well except the mailman, the neighbour next to my abuela, an old couple, a bunch of cats and dogs fighting… oh the cats and dogs fighting was pretty hilarious but we had to break that up. What else? Also-"

"He might be like this for a while," Wendy cut in. "The point is that no one by that name's come by."

"Huh, that's strange. He didn't even wait for us at the bottom of the mountain. Could he really have left?" Luna asked.

"What do you think, Aya?" Sora referred the question to Aya who seemed lost in thought.

She momentarily glanced up at them before returning to her pensive state. "N-no, it doesn't really seem like him. I know he was angry but I still believe in Sora's words that his anger was only transient. Something's wrong."

Balthier looked from his hand to Aya and then to Sora and Luna. "Then the worse may have happened. We didn't find Janus anywhere when we searched the cave, yes?"

"You think he's kidnapped Caleb?" Luna asked.

"Woah, woah, woah! Kidnapping? What have I stepped into and do I even want to be a part of this convo right now?" Wendy asked.

"Uh, do you know where Dipper and Mabel are?" Sora asked.

"In the room to your left and up the stairs," Wendy answered. Sora thanked her before setting off with the group up the stairs and into the first room to find the two Pines children and an exhausted Fran lying on the single bed in the room.

"How's she doing?" Balthier asked.

"She's sleeping like a baby," Mabel said, cupping both her hands and resting them against her cheek.

"Did you get the book back?" Dipper asked.

"Yes, although we have a few questions of our own," Luna said, holding up the journal for them to see. "All the things in this book—they're all real?"

Dipper and Mabel exchanged brief looks before Dipper stepped forward with a serious expression on his face. "Well, I suppose it's too late to hide it now and you guys do seem trustworthy. Yeah, it's real. All of it."

Sora blinked repeatedly for a few seconds before letting out a silent laugh. "Well there's no need to be so dramatic about it."

"Oh, sorry. I thought I could pull something off like in the movies, you know with the expressions of awe from you guys and the camera slowly panning in on your-"

"Yeah, I get it. It failed, but I get it," Luna said. "I was wondering if you knew about this symbol… here!"

After showing them the Eye of Horus, Dipper rubbed his chin and said, "You know, it looks likes the eye of someone I know but… he's not exactly one to be trusted. On one occasion he manipulated me and took over my body. I wouldn't advise messing with him, and I'm not even sure how you would be able to meet him," Dipper said.

"But if he does know something about it then it might give us more information," Sora said with his eyes on Luna.

"Were you even listening to a thing I said? I said it's not worth messing with him," Dipper replied with a stern look on his face.

Sora looked back at him. "What's this guy's name?"

"And he totally ignored me," Dipper murmured. "And I can't really say he's a guy anyway. He doesn't really have a physical form. His name is Bill Cipher."

Something like a chill suddenly ran through the room. Sora seized up for a moment and then looked over to the open window.

"Oh! Sora, show them that other thing we picked up," Luna said. Sora looked at her questioningly before opening his mouth as if remembering something. He pulled out the cassette tape that had been in the Multi-Bear's cave and showed it to them, placing his thumb above the label.

"Know what this is about? It's just random letters to us," Sora said.

"I… don't think so. I think Uncle Ford might be able to help though. He's the one who wrote the journals," Mabel said.

"He did? Wow, this is all his work. I have to say: he's a pretty good artist," Luna complimented before frowning. "Wait. Journals? As in plural? There are more of them?"

"Three and this is the third of those," Dipper answered. His eyes seemed to drift past them and he smiled. "Oh, hey, Uncle Ford!"


	30. Vicarious Sin, Part 3

Chapter 29

Vicarious Sin, Part 3

The group watched as Ford pressed A, 1, B, C and finally 3 in that order on the vending machine. There was a beeping sound before the vending machine swung to the side on its hinges like a door, revealing a secret passageway and stairs that led down underground.

"Totally a hidden room. That is _so_ awesome!" Aya announced excitedly.

"I never thought I would be showing this to anyone else, but you all seem different and you did go out of you way to retrieve the journal even amidst facing peril," Ford Pines acknowledged before starting down the stairs. They soon reached a door and Ford grasped the handle before turning to them. "Brace yourselves."

Strange ornaments and machines drew Sora's gaze upon the door opening. It was like something out of a sci-fi set in the movies, except he was actually standing in one, and it was real.

"Amazing… this stuff is easily more advanced than anything I've seen before. Cid would cry tears of disbelief into his cup of tea if he saw... this..." Sora's train of thought slowed to a crawl as he caught sight of something familiar on the table. He shook his head and pointed at the piece of heart. "This. Where did you find this?"

"I was looking in the junkyard for spare parts for an old invention of mine when I happened upon it on top of a heap of garbage. I admit, its allure resonated with me. It was such an unusual object that I couldn't help but look into it," Ford said.

"When did you find it?" Luna asked.

"About a month ago, I'd say? Why?" Ford asked.

Sora looked towards Luna. "That coincides with the earthquakes perfectly."

Luna nodded. "Yup. Mr. Pines, I hate to tell you this but whatever you're doing with the heart needs to stop. It's not off this world. It's probably been causing the earthquakes in this area too."

"Oh, don't be ridiculous! This little thing can cause so much trouble? Besides, I am on the cusp of something great here. I know it. I'd be a fool to stop now," Ford said.

"Now where have I heard that before?" Sora murmured. "Look, I've already seen what this thing can do and it's not good. Another one of these very much like this has already taken lives and we were there to witness. We know what something like this can do."

Ford gave Sora a quick up and down inspection before looking back at the heart. "Perhaps they were just careless. I'll be careful."

"Careful really doesn't factor into this equation, I'm afraid. You have to get rid of it," Luna urged.

A frown marked Ford's face and he gave her a look, one that froze Luna in her tracks. For a second or two there had been a dangerous glint in his eyes, as if he had wanted to kill her. But the look soon disappeared and he shook his head.

"I can't. I won't. I can tell I'm almost there. Just a little more and I'll…"

As Ford looked towards the heart again, Sora and Luna backed away to where Aya, Balthier and Kupopo were.

"It's addiction," Balthier said, reading their expressions as they came over.

Sora raised his brows. "Huh?"

"He doesn't seem to be aware of his actions and the impact they have both on him and others around him," the sky pirate explained.

"Personal experience?" Luna asked him. Balthier looked on with amusement.

"Something like that. Let's just say you don't want to make enemies with the wrong kinds when it comes to gambling. Tell me, when you took that other heart piece you were talking about, were the people who had it also acting like this?"

"They were. So then the people who are acting like this, are only doing so because of the heart?" Luna asked.

"Well, if this really is a part of Kingdom Hearts, it makes sense. I mean, we fought a war over it so I know how easily its light can tempt our hearts. It's like all your worst traits just come rising to the surface, only that I don't think they're what they should be. It's like they're amplified to dangerous levels," Aya said. "We have to get it away from him somehow."

"Well, let's deal with finding Caleb first, kupo," Kupopo said.

"Right. Can't get his help if we piss him off first," Sora said, pulling out the cassette tape. "Sorry, but the heart aside I was wondering if you could take a look at this. Mabel thought you might be able to help with it."

Ford took the tape from Sora's hands and held it up at eye level, flipping it around a few times before laughing. "Looks like someone has a twisted sense of humor. They expected you to figure that out?"

"I think so," Sora said. He pointed at a few words on tape that he had been thinking about for a while. They were the only legible part of the entire thing in his mind. "The 'XION' part? That's my friend's name, but other than that the rest seems like nonsense."

"Ah, I see. And it's after an equality sign even. Seems like you've got your hands on a Vigenère cipher. It's just a form of encrypting a message by turning it into a code. The way you solve it is with a key."

"A key?" Sora asked, summoning his Keyblade.

Ford frowned. "A key, as in the code that will help you crack this thing?"

"Oh," was Sora's reply. He let out an awkward laugh, letting the Keyblade dematerialize in his hands. Ford continued to stare at his hand for a while until Sora cleared his throat, prompting him to look back up.

"Ah, yes. Anyway, it seems the key in this case we're looking for is your friend's name. The idea is that you take the first letter of the actual encoded message and match it with the first letter of your friend's name, then the second letter of the encoded message with the second of your friend's name and so on and so forth. Since Xion is only four letters, once you reach the end, you start over with the 'X' and continue from there. You do that until all letters in the encoded message have been deciphered. If a deciphered letter presents a dilemma from which multiple solutions can be discovered, you simply choose the one that seem most appropriate. Logically, if it looks like a vowel should go there, then a vowel goes there, for example. Understand?"

"Yeaaaaaa-no. Can you do it instead?" Sora asked.

"Kids these days. You've never came up with your own secret code before that you used between friends?" Ford asked.

"I have nothing to hide," Sora said.

"If you have nothing to hide then you're a pretty boring person," Ford said. "Let's see… since you're so reluctant, scratch that, lazy, I guess I'll have to do it. One moment."

He walked over to the desk with two journals both similar in appearance to the third one. He opened up the number one journal and flicked few the first few pages before stopping and giving a grunt of satisfaction.

"So... one more question. Do you know how we can meet Bill Cipher?" Sora asked. There was something like a snap of a pencil coming from Ford's surrounding area and for a second, Sora had thought that he had possibly given him a stroke.

"Wh-what did you say? How do you know that name?" Ford asked.

"Is there a way to meet him?" Sora sidestepped the question by repeating his own, taking a step forward as he did so.

"Even if I knew a way, I would be an idiot to let a bunch of kids meet with him. Bill Cipher seeks one thing and only one thing. To turn the world into one in which the rules of natural law and order don't apply. Meeting him would be tantamount to sending you to your deaths."

"With all due respect, I've done this too many times now for those words to have meaning. I know the risks, and I'm willing to face them," Sora said. Despite his serious tone, Ford seemed to pay no mind to his words and instead turned around, holding out a paper to show them.

"Society of the Blind Eye? What's this nonsense?" Sora asked.

Ford smirked and looked at Balthier. "'What's this nonsense', he says. This is your message, one hundred per cent decrypted. I can't say I know what it me-"

"Ow! Stop it Mabel!"

"But I can't see!"

"If you keep doing that, you're going to- AH!"

Dipper was the first to fall from his hiding spot near the door with Mabel soon falling on top of him.

"Ah, nice of you to join the conversation. Is there anything you'd like to add?" Balthier asked, looking down on them.

"Err, we overheard, accidentally, mind you, and… we know about the Blind Eye Society," Dipper said. "We went there with Old Man McGucket once to get his memories back. They weren't exactly the most welcoming group."

"Fiddleford McGucket, eh? Reminds me, I need to get back in contact with him soon. You could say we're old business partners," Ford said.

"You think you could take us to the place, Dipper? We need to find our friend as soon as possible," Sora said.

"Yeah, it's right under the museum. You helped me out so it's only right that I return the favor," Dipper said.

"Thanks," Sora said. He turned to look at Ford. "I guess that leaves Bill Cipher. Though if you won't help us, I guess we'll have to find a way to meet him ourselves."

"Hold on." Ford raised a hand and walked over to a table from the side. He picked up something that resembled a metal helmet with strange rod-like protrusions all over its surface. "This was something I was working on around the time I began travelling. It was based off the method of loci, but rather than focusing on visualizing memory, it focuses on visualizing dream instead. Have you ever awoken from a dream only to barely have recollection of it? This was intended as a way of placing the dreamer within those dreams in order to help with that. It also had the added entertainment benefit of being able to enter your own dreams."

"That's amazing. Well, I'd say I'd love to visit my own dreams but I'm already living them," Luna said gleefully.

"But what does that have to do with Bill Cipher?" Sora asked.

"Bill has no physical form and as such he can only exist within the realms of the Dreamscape, that's the term I coined it. I'll be blunt. If you want to meet him, you'll have to enter your own dream to do so and this will help you do it," Bill said.

"Wonderful. What's the catch?" Balthier asked.

"Well, if you die in your dream. You die in real life. Well, it's more like your brain will go into a vegetative state but my point stands," Ford said. "You're going into territory where Bill is most powerful. He'll be able to overwhelm you easily. The only thing I can do to help from out here is keep your REM patterns monitored on this screen here. At the first sign of unusual activity I'll unplug the thing though you may notice a slight disconnect between yourself and your body for a short while, kind of like the feeling you have when you sleep on your arm. Also, I only have one of these so only one of you will be able to go in. It's a big risk you're taking. Are you sure you want to do this?"

Sora sighed. "Well, when you put it like that, now I'm not so sure. Maybe we should try and find the meaning to that eye some other way?"

"I… I think I want to give it a try," Aya admitted with closed eyes.

"Aya! No, there has to be another way," Luna said.

"I've heard that before. Until now, I've always relied on others to fight my battles for me. In a way, I was selfish, placing my own hardships on others so I didn't have to feel that pain. That has to end. Maybe there is another way, but right now this is only one we know so why not try it?" Aya put forth her case. There was a conviction and bravery in her eyes that Sora hadn't seen in her until this moment. Was it really right for him to obstruct something like this if she believed in it so much?

"But Aya, we can't have you risking your life just for this. Please, don't do this-"

"Luna, it's alright," Sora said calmly. "Aya's just following her heart. If she believes she can do it, then we must too."

Luna stared at him seemingly dismayed at the prospect before sighing. "Right. I suppose I'm not exactly the best person to be telling you not to go ahead with this anyway. And in your place, we'll go and find Caleb."

"Thank you for trusting me. I know you didn't trust us at first, but I'm glad I met you guys," Aya said.

"Ugh, enough of the mushy stuff already. You make it sound like we won't see each other again," Sora said.

"Exactly, because we WILL be seeing each other again. And when we do, all of us are going for an all you can eat at the diner. Balthier pays," Luna quickly added much to the surprise of a spluttering Balthier.

"Heh, I'm looking forward to it. Certainly can't not come back when free food is a part of it," Aya said.

"Sounds to me like the food is more important than us. I feel unloved," Sora said with a big grin.

"Can you blame me?" Aya snickered and looked to Ford with a nod. "I'm ready when you are."

"I suppose I should stay with Aya and Ford just to make sure everything goes okay," Balthier said before looking to Sora and Luna. "The two of you will be alright on your own?"

"Yeah, but who knows what Janus has up his sleeve. He caught Riku and Xion so I don't expect it to be easy, but with the two of us we'll stand at least a decent chance," Sora said. He moved closer to Balthier and then whispered. "You think you can negotiate with him to give us the heart while we're away?"

"My intentions exactly," Balthier said. Sora nodded and took one last look at Aya who nodded back at him with a smile. If she was scared out of her wits right now it certainly didn't show, although Sora was sure she wasn't completely confident either.

"We'll be back as soon as we can. Be careful, Aya," Luna said.

"I will," Aya replied. Luna gave her a final smile before following Dipper, Mabel, Sora and Kupopo out of the room.

* * *

 ** _Rest Room_**

 ** _Underneath the Museum of History_**

Caleb had heard stories of Keyblade Wielders who had been captured and interrogated by opposing factions. Actually, he doubted there was a person who had experienced that war who hadn't heard about them or had known someone who had been involved. Such things were known as the dark side of the Keyblade War and had hardly ever been brought up. Instead, comradery and being able to forge strong and tight links of trust and friendship with the specific unit they had all been assigned had been expected to take the forefront. The idea behind it, Caleb assumed, was that even if you were captured, loyalty to the unit would ensure the captive wouldn't sell the unit and Horus out.

He found now that he was in very much a similar position. He was seat on an uncomfortable wooden chair in front of a rectangular table that seemed to wobble every time he placed his hands on it.

The door soon opened and a man walked through, one who he had spent so much time running away. Running away… only to find himself back at _his_ mercy. The man walked over to him before holding out something.

"Coffee?" Janus asked.

Caleb's eyes darted upwards at the cup before shaking his head. Janus shrugged and took the seat opposite him, setting the cup in front of him and opening up the lid so he could put the sugar in. Eventually after stirring, he placed the lid back on and took a sip.

"Gravity Falls makes some good coffee. It's piquant and you can even taste the origin from the coffee beans, which not that many people know how to perfect these days. My compliments to the maker," Janus said. "You sure you don't want any?"

Caleb shook his head again.

Janus rolled his eyes and set the coffee down. "So what should I do with you? Better yet, what do you expect me to do? I'm a forgiving man, but if I do let you off the hook, surely that sets a bad precedent for the others? You can understand, right? Simply letting you off the hook is not going to do."

"You can punish me all you want, but let Aya go. I was the one who convinced her to come with me. It was all me, alright? So please, stop chasing after her," Caleb begged.

"And have her spoil all my plans? Don't insult your own intelligence much less mine. Still, I find it a funny coincidence that our paths would cross here of all places," Janus said. "To think that you would appear at the place where I would start my legacy in annals of history."

"Y-you mean… you weren't following us?" Caleb asked.

"Following you? If our paths crossed, it would have been through one of our own or purely by chance. Why would I waste my efforts to chase after two people? You know I'm not one to think small, Caleb," Janus said. He took another sip of his coffee before backing away from the table and standing. "Which reminds me… as with all reunions I believe a gift is appropriate to commemorate coming together after a period of separation. I'll be back in a short while."

Janus walked out of the room once again, leaving Caleb alone with the cup of coffee on the table. What was most unusual to Caleb was that he had heard no sign of the door being locked from the outside. That meant that he could probably escape whenever he wanted, if he wanted, but then again that was probably why Janus had left it unlocked. Opening that door wasn't a chance of escape. It was simply an opportunity that, in the short term, seemed highly tempting. It was falling right in Janus' hands.

The door opened again and Janus came in, this time with a gray aluminum briefcase. He replaced the coffee with briefcase on the table and took another sip before speaking.

"Well? Aren't you curious? Open it," Janus said. It didn't sound like an order but in Caleb's fearful mind, anything Janus demanded of him could be construed as one. Caleb's trembling hands moved to the briefcase and flipped the latches before opening the case. Aside from the foam surrounding it, the only other thing in the case was a strange gun-like weapon placed within the matching shaped recess of the foam.

"What the hell…" Caleb whispered as his hands reached out for the object. His head darted upwards as Janus shut the briefcase just before he could reach for the weapon.

"We can do this the easy way, or the hard way. The choice is yours," Janus said. He slowly slid the case to the side of them and then let out a smile at Caleb.

* * *

 ** _Land Scarred By War, The Dreamscape_**

Aya's eyes opened to find themselves staring at a darkened sky. Were the clouds moving faster than usual, or was it just her mind playing tricks on her? She sat up and observed the area. She recognized the rock formations and atmosphere of dread immediately.

"This is… the Badlands? But why?" Aya asked in a terrified voice. An explosion went off from nearby, or the sound of one anyway, but it was still enough to give Aya a start. When she looked in the direction of the sound however, she found nothing that indicated that an actual explosion had gone off. Of course there hadn't been. She was in a dream after all. A dream of a terrible nightmare that had been reality. "But why a dream of this? Of all places?"

"I know. Death. Chaos. Despair. This is my kind of dream!"

Aya shot up from the ground and spun around to see a floating yellow triangle with thin black limbs sticking out from the bottom. It also wore a small black bow tie and a matching top hat, though what Aya was most drawn to was its single eye in between the two accessories.

"Who are you?" Aya asked.

"Who am I? You came in here to see me, no?" the triangle hinted, albeit condescendingly. "I mean, to think you had the gall to come all the way out here and by yourself no less. That Stanford really is a fool. You seriously didn't think I was listening in? You think I'll give you information?"

"I don't think you will. I know you will. You won't have any choice anyway," Aya replied. She wasn't sure just yet how she was going to get much of anything out of him, but the first step in battle was appearing confident even in the midst of an obvious disadvantage.

Bill seemed amazed at this before letting out a laugh. "Oho! Now this, I have to hear. Okay, I'm all ears. Well, not like I have any but that won't stop me from hearing this. Just how will you get me to tell you what you want to know?"

"It's simple, really. You tell me what I want to know and if not then I'll force it out of you," Aya said, summoning Mhaya.

Bill froze at the sight of the Keyblade and suddenly flew in close, causing Aya to jump a bit. "This weapon… where did you get this weapon?"

Aya smirked. "So I have your undivided attention. How about an exchange of information then?"

"Heh, you've got guts, kid. Just one little problem with that inflated confidence of yours. Just where do you think you are? You're not in your world. You're in my dominion now, where I'm most powerful." As Bill spoke, his features began to change. His small triangular body grew in size and the whites of his eye changed blood red.

Aya was about to take a step back when she saw something on her arm. Fire. Her arm was on fire. No, not just her arm but her whole body. Aya screamed and began violently swatting at herself, trying to put the flames out. It was when she backed against a rock that she realized something.

"The flames… aren't hot?" Aya held her flaming hands up in front of her and gazed at them for a while. Despite the fact that she could clearly see fire, it wasn't burning her. She felt completely normal. But then again, of course she would. This was a dream after all. She looked up at the ginormous triangle. "That was a nasty trick."

"I'd hope so. My middle name isn't Bill "nasty" Cipher for nothing," Bill said. His body shapeshifted into a hammer and her swung down on Aya who met and deflected the attack with Mhaya. "Hey! You're not allowed to do that."

The pyramid like Bill suddenly disappeared from sight before reappearing above her. As the pyramid came down, Aya threw herself out of harm's way, just managing to escape the pyramid crushing her. Gripping her Keyblade tightly, she moved forward and attacked, striking the pyramid left and right.

"Ow! That hurts, you know?" Bill yelled as he transformed out of the pyramid in to gun. He fired off a shot which Aya countered by first casting Slow magic on the bullet before knocking it away.

"No matter how hard you try, you can't frighten me. I won't run. Tell me about the Eye of Horus," Aya ordered.

"You still don't get it. This is just me getting into the mood. Making you confident." Bill's voice grew deeper though that was not the only thing that had changed. The sky turned a shade of red before a crack appeared and split the sky in half. Bill transformed back into a pyramid and ascended to the sky just as a beam of light shot down from crevice in the sky. The beam hit the pyramid and lasers like disco beams began moving around the pyramid.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Aya jumped and dodged as she worked her way around the moving lasers, throwing magic every so often at the pyramid. She had no way of being able to tell if her magic was even having an effect because she didn't have time to look.

The lasers eventually dispersed, Aya having to stop in time as one shot past her and blew up a rock. The force of the blast was enough to throw her off her feet. The pyramid soon flipped on its side and headed back to the ground, using its pointed end to turn itself into a spinning top. Aya quickly scrambled to her feet and started heading in the opposite direction. She heard the sound of rocks being blasted apart as the tornado pyramid wrecked everything in its path.

Aya soon stopped in her tracks. Behind her was a rampaging pyramid, in front of her the cliff's edge. She looked back at the pyramid and held her Keyblade out in front of her. She supposed now was better time than ever to unleash her full power.

"Mhaya, protect us!" Aya yelled. She held her Keyblade up with both hands and charged forward at the spinning top.

"Hah! You really are foolish. I'll crush you!" Bill laughed as he continued spinning towards her. Aya raised her Keyblade above her head and waited. Just before the pyramid could come in contact with her, she brought the Keyblade down and stopped it in its tracks. The pyramid kept spinning but also wasn't moving, Mhaya's obstruction ensuring that sparks shot off from their collision.

"What? This… isn't… possible!" Bill yelled.

"Don't underestimate me!" Aya yelled back. She stuck her left arm out to the side and cast Magnet, drawing the broken pieces of rock that the pyramid had crushed towards her. The small pieces attached themselves to her arm, creating a rough uneven layer that only expanded as more of the pieces came to her. When she was satisfied with the amount on her arm she began driving it into the pyramid over and over.

"Ow, stop that! Uncle! Uncle!"

"Not enough… Hyyaaaaa!" Aya screamed, throwing her all into one final punch. The spinning pyramid began tipping left and right uncontrollably. Finally, the pyramid flipped on its side, knocking Bill out of his pyramid state and transforming him back into his smaller form. As Bill tried to get back up, Aya walked over and placed her foot down, trapping him to the ground. "Tell me about the Eye of Horus."

* * *

 ** _Gravity Falls Museum of History_**

Sora was overcome with an uncomfortable sensation as he walked into a room full of eyes. Eyes in jars, eyes on tapestries, eyes propped on objects, eyes were everywhere in the room, a complete divergence from the other rooms he had been up until this point.

"Creepy…" Luna described next to him. "I can't imagine this room is popular with the visitors."

"Well, no, not unless you're a pupil of the trade. Bu-dum-tish!" Sora joked.

"Nice one," Luna said. "So, what are we looking for here, Dipper?"

"Uh… well, this!" Dipper placed his hand against what appeared to be a stone tablet of an eye and pushed it into the wall. The wall trembled before sliding to the left, revealing a staircase going deep down into the museum.

"Okay, is Gravity Falls just full of these places? First the Mystery Shack and now the museum?" Luna asked. "Not that I'm complaining. I read mystery books all the time. I love things like this though they do tend to get a little cliché. But you two are here for the summer, aren't you? It must be exciting, seeing new things like this every day."

"It's great. I even had my first boyfriend here… though he kind of turned out to be a merman. What do you guys get up to?" Mabel asked.

"Oh, we just travel from place to place helping others. Anyway, it should be a straight shot from here right? It might be a bit too dangerous for you guys to come with us. Kupopo, err, entertain them or something while we're gone," Sora said to the moogle.

"I'm not a clown, kupo," Kupopo retorted.

"I never said you were, but I'm counting on you guys to hold the fort until we return. We'll be back as soon as we can," Sora said. The kids nodded and Sora entered the secret passage with Luna following behind. The staircase to the next door was longer than the one in the Mystery Shack but they were fortunate enough to have torches on the walls lighting their path.

"Strange to think that a society was down here ensuring that all the town's secrets were kept from the people of this town," Luna said as they made their way down. "But if he's here then Janus knows about this place. Why?"

"I think we'll find that out if we keep going, whether we want to or not," Sora replied. The entered through the door at the end of the long set of stairs after giving each other a nod and found themselves in an open hallway. "So this is where they would bring people who found out about the supernatural elements of Gravity Falls. They'd wipe their memories of the entire incident."

"The thing is I can kind of understand why they would do it. People have fought and destroyed things just because they don't understand them. Because they fear them. And yet kidnapping people of the street and forcefully taking their memory? That's unacceptable," Luna said.

"I agree," muttered a third voice in the room, deep and resonating. Sora and Luna turned to the origin of the voice, which they had heard behind them to find a man standing there with ash white hair and yellow-tinted glasses. "For what will turning's one eye from the truth do but continue the hereditary ignorance that outlasts generation after generation?"

"Ignorance is hereditary?" Luna asked.

Janus parted from the wall and walked towards them. "What else can it be? Ignorance is a virus that only acts to slow down the rate of evolution. The masses claw for it, seeking false hope and peace in its illusory warmth. The notion that every man is for himself, that if you work hard, play by the rules and contribute to society's engine, you just may be rewarded. All of that is nothing more than a fallacy. Ignorance isn't bliss. Not true bliss anyway."

"And let me guess. You think you're the right person to eliminate this ignorance?" Sora asked.

"Ignorance is but one link in a much larger chain of this world's problems. But in regards to your question, if not me then who? Only I would be willing to be the world's enemy if it means ultimately saving them from themselves. Or maybe… you could take my stead? You do like to play the savior after all. Want a shot at it?" Janus asked with an amused smirk on his face.

"The only thing I'm saving right now is Caleb. Where is he?" Sora asked.

"That's not a no," Janus said with a chuckle. "Or perhaps Riku would be more willing to pick up the pieces. He and I had quite the revealing catch up a while back. Apparently his hatred for me extends deeply, which is of no surprise considering what happened back at the Asylum. But I do fear for him so. When you next meet, that hatred might just manifest into something not even you may recognize."

"You're messing with him… Damn you! Leave Riku alone!" Sora yelled.

"Leave Riku alone? But it is Riku who refuses to leave me alone. Though you're right, maybe he isn't the best candidate. After all, what he is doing now is the perfect example of the ignorance that rots the world." Janus took a few more steps until his face became more clearly illuminated by the candles in the area. "Aya's not with you? A pity, though I suppose standing by while others draw blood in her sake is never an easy thing to confront. No matter how much she may distance herself from the act, the sin always remains. And so even if they killed for her, she feels hers is the biggest sin of them all. The act of using others to run away from her own weakness."

"Don't talk about her like she's some project that you can dissect!" Luna raised her voice, hoping it could resonate just as well as Janus'. "I know what it's like to run away from a problem. To feel helpless. She's not the only one who bears sins, but that's not something you get to exploit."

"And I imagine that exploiting sin is a sin as well, or are you too ignorant to realize that?" Sora added.

"And it seems you have a knack for jumping to conclusion way too quickly. I never said I had anything to hide. Unlike the masses, I proudly wear my sins on my sleeve. But enough talk. You were here for Caleb, correct? He's around here somewhere, along with the bomb that's soon to go off of course."

"Bomb?" Sora asked.

"No need to panic. You can still save him, you know? You only have…" Janus put his wrist up to his face. "One minute and thirty seconds. Think you can find him in time?"

"Sora…"

"Luna, go! I won't let Janus escape," Sora said.

Luna gave a reluctant nod and bit her lip before running off. She entered the first room on her left and charged down the corridor at full speed, opening the first door available to her to find nothing. She gritted her teeth and ran for the next room. On the next door available to her she pressed down on the handle and attempted to barge through only to find the handle only going down halfway. She summoned Dream Seeker and was about to unlock the keyhole when the Keyblade suddenly turned her hand and guided it toward the next door on the opposite side of the corridor.

"Huh?" Luna questioned. She shrugged it off and headed towards the other door instead. This one was unlocked and it was here she also found Caleb lying on the floor. She ran over to him and gently shook him. "Caleb! Caleb, are you okay?"

Caleb's eyes opened. Although momentarily confused and wandering, they soon looked upon Luna and asked, "Do I know you?"

It was at that point that Luna realized that a bomb had gone off. Not a literal bomb, but one in her mind and maybe even her heart.

"Caleb, it's me… Luna. Don't you know me?" Luna asked, hoping for the best.

"I… I'm sorry. I don't remember anyone by that name. You look sad though. Is everything alright?" Caleb asked.

"Why? What is happening here?" Luna murmured to herself in disbelief. She shook her head and looked back at Caleb. "What about Aya? Do you remember her?"

"Aya? I'm sorry, my head feels a bit foggy at the moment. Am I supposed to know her?" Caleb asked. Luna's fists curled into painful balls and she looked away, trying not to show her tears.

"What do you last remember?" she asked, with her head still turned.

"I… think I was at a campfire with someone, and we were eating… crepes? I remember feeling really happy at the time. Now my head kinda hurts," Caleb joked with a chuckle. "Where are we anyway? What a weird place."

"Janus…" Luna whispered as she wiped away the tears quickly before looking back. She looked behind Caleb to see what looked like a strange device shaped like a gun and surrounding, pieces of small glass that looked like they could have been attached to the device. "What happened here?"

Luna walked over to the gun and picked it up before looking at Caleb. "Come on. Let's get you out of here. Guess Janus was lying about the bo-"

KABOOM!

The sound of an explosion above her was followed by the ceiling caving in. Luna spun around to dive under the table only to realize that Caleb was frozen in terror and wouldn't move. Luna ran and knelt over him, bracing for what was almost certain death.

"Huh? What the hell is that?"

Luna opened one eye slowly followed by the other at Caleb's voice and looked up to see a blue sphere around them and, more importantly, a woman. She looked at the wall, then back to Luna, then at the wall and finally back to Luna before acting surprised.

"Oh shoot. You can see me? This was so not supposed to happen," the woman said.

"I mean… you're here. How am I not supposed to see you?" Luna asked.

"Well, I'm not exactly supposed to be interfering in the mortal realm. Tricky subject. Honestly, I'm surprised you don't recognize me," the woman replied.

Luna's frown grew into a smile. "Oh. You're my fairy godmother then."

"What? No. That thing you're wielding? The Keyblade? Guess who's been kicking butt for you all this time."

"You've been in my Keyblade?" Luna asked inquisitively.

"Been in it? Pfft, I practically _am_ it. Your Dream Seeker's true name and also just happen to also be a Goddess," the woman answered, landing on her bare feet.

"Artemis… You're Artemis!" Luna exclaimed with wide eyes. "Oh my dear aunt sally, I am fangirling so hard right now."

"Woah, chill there. I just saved you, you know? The last thing I need is for you to have a heart attack anyway," Artemis said.

"But still, I'm talking to my Keyblade here. Like, how many people get to say that. It's crazy! Well, it both sounds crazy and it IS crazy!" Luna cried.

"Well, in any case, we can talk later. Right now we should be making our way back to Sora. I fear for his safety," Artemis said. Luna nodded and looked to Caleb before extending her hand.

"Come on. We have to go," Luna said to him.

"B-but… she just appeared… out of nowhere! How is that possible?" Caleb asked. Because it would have taken too long to explain, Luna ignored his question and tugged on his arms. Caleb soon seemed to come back to reality and after finally processing Luna's words stood up on his own two feet and looked back to see that Artemis had disappeared from the room. "Where did she-"

"Come on," Luna urged, knowing full well where Artemis had disappeared to. She could feel Artemis' warmth in her Keyblade so she wasn't too fazed as Caleb had been. In fact, it was probably stranger that it actually felt normal to her.

They made their way back into the hall and to the room where Luna had come in with Sora. Once she set eyes on him, Luna's heart almost skipped a beat. The soft groan she heard from Sora however allayed her fears of the worst.

"Sora! What happened?" Luna asked, running to his side.

"I heard an explosion and turned away for a second. Apparently that second was all he needed. Argh, I'm so annoyed with myself for falling for such a simple trick," Sora said. His eyes lit up as if seeing Caleb for first time and he smiled. "At least you're okay. Aya's been worried sick about you, you know?"

"I feel kind of bad. She mentioned an Aya too but I just don't remember if I've met her. I've met you before as well?" Caleb asked.

"Sora… I found this in the room he was in," Luna said, showing him the gun. "Did Janus really do something to his memory?"

Sora sighed and kicked at the ground. "He did and he didn't. He hinted at it while we were fighting but I couldn't make sense of it until seeing him now. Janus said he gave Caleb some kind of choice. This is just speculation but I think Caleb might have done it himself… in order to protect Aya."

"No!" Luna cried.

"I… don't understand. Maybe I really have done something wrong?" Caleb asked.

"No. You haven't," Sora told him before smiling. "Well, let's see if we can jog your memory a bit. Let's head back to the Mystery Shack."

* * *

 ** _Laboratory, The Mystery Shack_**

"Come on, Caleb. You have to remember. She's your friend," Luna said, presenting him to Aya. The whole group, including the recently wakened Fran had joined them in the room, all their eyes on Caleb as he struggled to remember his friend in front of him.

"I… I don't. I can't. I'm sorry. I don't know what these Keyblades are either and I certainly can't use one like you guys. If I really have forgotten something, then maybe it is lost for good, but we can start over, right?" Caleb asked.

Aya looked gingerly at the others before drying her eyes and looking back to Caleb. "Maybe, but until then, you should go your own way."

"Aya!" Everyone in the room seemed stunned, save for the confused Caleb and Aya.

"You had a dream. If there's anything I won't allow you to forget, it's that. You wanted to open up your own restaurant, remember?" Aya asked.

"A restaurant? That does sound like me. I do enjoy cooking, that much I remember. Then I guess we really must be friends if you know that much about me," Caleb said.

Aya beamed at him and punched him playfully on the shoulder. "Then you have a lot of work to do. Better get started. I'll have you know I don't like waiting too long for my food."

"I don't really understand. Why is she doing this?" Sora murmured in a low voice as he and the others watched the scene unfold in front of them.

"If I had to take a gander… releasing him from the pain and frustration that war brings," Balthier said. "She doesn't want to keep relying on others to fight her battles. What she's doing may appear foolish on the surface, but it takes true courage to give up the things important to us when we wish to protect them."

"Huh," Sora said. If that was really what Aya wanted, then he could see her point but there was still something unsettling about it, probably because the one who had been the cause of this in the first place had been Janus. "What about the heart piece, by the way?"

"Aya managed to release it while I was distracting Ford," Balthier explained. It was true that Ford Pines was not among them currently now that Sora thought about it. He hoped losing over a month's worth of work hadn't completely crushed him but it was for the best.

"I guess it doesn't need to be me or Sora that releases the heart. It just needs to be anyone with a Keyblade?" Luna asked.

"I guess so…" Sora replied with a frown on his face.

"Uh oh, what's with that look?" Luna asked.

"I guess it's just that… we're heading into the unknown right now. Just thinking about Janus makes me really angry, and then there's the rest of Horus, Xanatos and KRONOS and who knows what else. We… can't keep going on like this. I didn't want to admit it at first because I didn't want others getting caught up in our mess but… we can't do this alone. This has become too big for just the two of us to handle."

Luna nodded. "I was thinking that too actually. I mean we do have Balthier, Fran, Kupopo and now Aya with us but it doesn't hurt to get a few more hands to help. So are we going to accept Aqua's proposal?"

"Yeah, I suppose we'll try them too," Sora said.

"Them _too_?"

Sora pulled out the compass that Jack had given to him from the left jacket pocket and smiled. "I think it's time we cleared things up with Moira's Crescent."

* * *

 **A/N: So next time we'll be taking a break from Sora and co. First will be a trip back to Radiant Garden for some much needed character development and then we'll join Aqua, Terra and Ven as they try to chase after Xanatos. As for what Aya found out about the Eye of Horus... I'll be leaving that carrot dangling above your heads until we next join up with Sora and Luna. See you next time!**


	31. Radiant Hearts

Chapter 30

Radiant Hearts

The doors of Alfonso's prison swung open with a nasty creak and June Caster, a girl almost creepily the opposite of the bleak atmosphere, casually skipped in with a dreamlike beam on her face.

After setting a tray down of food containing carrots, mashed potatoes, steak and gravy, she looked up at him and smiled.

"Strange," Alfonso started. "Usually it's the cronies who come with my meal."

"You've got it easy, you know? Well, easy as far as most prisoners of war go," June said, letting her shoulder rest against the wall. "I've known others who have suffered fates far worse. We could strap you against a tree to let you suffer under the beating sun. Then, we could lock you up somewhere dark where you might only receive cold soup and stale bread for your worries. It won't be enough to satisfy you. It only makes you hungrier. Eventually, you might just spot a rat entering your cell and the idea might just drift into your head that the only way to survive is to do the unthinkable. And don't even get me started on how difficult it is to reconnect with the outside world after you've suffered all of that. So you see, you really have it easy for being a POW. The least you could do is offer us a freebie."

Alfonso could detect a hint of passive aggression behind her fanciful voice but chose not to bring it up. "As if I have any reason to be afraid of you. You brought me here because you wanted to find the secret this castle holds. An impregnable fortress that can crush your enemies outright. You've kept me alive so far because I'm smart. That means that as long as I choose not to co-operate, you'll have no choice but to keep me alive because you lack alternatives. If I told you I knew something, I'd give up my only safeguard."

June took one step, then another, and another towards Alfonso. She stretched out her hand, aiming straight for Alfonso's face. As the proximity between them closed, Alfonso could feel his face warming up.

Her hand soon stopped just short of Alfonso's nose before her index finger travelled upwards and poked Alfonso on the forehead. She leaned back and chuckled. "Okay. Besides, you've just reminded me that I have a birthday date. Well, I haven't necessarily been asked yet but I'll be doing the asking."

"Birthday?" Alfonso repeated.

"Yes, it's my birthday and no, you're not invited. I won't let you ruin my day just because you won't comply. Oh well, I'm sure Sabbat will keep you company while I'm gone. He just came back from an excursion in one of the seven princesses' worlds. Although I do hear that he can sometimes go a bit too far without even knowing it, but I'm sure that's not a problem for someone like you," June said. She blew him a kiss before leaving the room and closing the door behind her.

After taking the lift back up to the top of the castle, she found herself in the chapel, a room that was rarely ever used except for the one man who liked to come to be by himself and the girl who admired its echoey walls for her singing practice. On a few occasions they had even met in the room, but otherwise they would come at different times, or to be more precise, June would come at the same time but as for Irva Torvald she could never predict when he would be there.

She walked through the rows of pews and soon stopped at the first one. It seemed that luck was on her side today. June beamed at her commander and sat down next to him. It was this, not her standing next to him, which snapped him out of his concentration, forcing him to reluctantly open his eyes and take notice of his surroundings once more.

"I've been wondering this for a while, but do you come here to sleep sometimes?" June enquired.

"Only when I have trouble sleeping. Perhaps it is the stained-glass windows that help me lapse into slumber. And this room has a much cooler temperature than the ones in the dormitories. Apparently the previous ruler had never heard of air conditioners before," Irva said. Due to his calm and deadpan expression, it was hard to tell if he was making a joke or not sometimes.

"Well, it's your duty to fix that, isn't it?" June replied brightly. "But you can do that some other day. Do you remember what day it is?"

"April 5th? What about it?" Irva asked. June continued to look expectantly at him until he said in the most stoic and Irva-like way possible. "Oh."

" _Oh_ , he says. I can't believe you forgot about my birthday!" June exclaimed, feigning offence.

"I've been busy these past few days. I apologize. Though to be fair, you are twenty-four now. I haven't celebrated a birthday since twenty-one. Isn't it about time you grew up?"

"No, I'm a five-year-old in a twenty-four-year-old's body," June squealed.

"That must have been embarrassing to say. It certainly was embarrassing to hear," Irva remarked. "There's a problem. Someone within our group has been leaking information to the insurgents. We've been compromised."

"A traitor?" June whispered. "Is there any evidence? I mean, I'm not doubting you but this is a pretty serious matter."

"You remember the plans to install anti-aircraft defensive systems? Those weapons were placed in locations that only we knew about. Yesterday, it was reported to me that those weapons had been destroyed," Irva told her.

"I see. I wouldn't like to suspect our own though," June said.

"I believe we can contain the contagion of distrust by confining it to one small part of Horus. The only ones I told about this were you and the team I chose to install the defense system, the Hauteclaire Division."

"General Sabbat's group? You think one of his had something to do with this?" June asked.

"Or he himself perhaps, though I doubt it. He is one of my father's closest friends. Betraying me would essentially be betraying my father," Irva said. "That said, do keep an eye on him for the time being. Although I do not immediately cast my suspicions upon him, it is better to be safe than sorry. Friend of my father's or not, I cannot afford dissent within our own at such a crucial time as this."

"I think… we should leave that for tomorrow. You're going to take me out for my birthday," June said.

"What? Weren't we just done talking how you're too old for this?" Irva asked.

"Oh, come on you big sourpuss. Besides, it will help you too. We're going to go meet the people," June said. "After all, if one wishes to rule over the people, they must first know the people. Also it doesn't exactly help that our popularity is kinda crappy."

"I suppose that is true. A public that is not on my side is one that can very well be used against me by the insurgents. We've managed to quell any resistance so far based on threats alone but that won't be enough. If we're not careful, the retaliation may prove severe, and it will not be a question of if but when."

"Oh, and you have got to stop talking like that," June pointed out.

Irva furrowed his brow. "Like what?"

"You don't even realize it. Well, shall we go around and see if we can warm the hearts of the people?" June jumped up from the seat and held out her hand.

"I'm not sure this is an entirely good idea. I haven't the first thing about talking to people and connecting with them on an emotional level. My father only taught me that which was necessary to take over from him," Irva said.

"Which is why we try," June replied, leaning forward and wrapping her hands around his right hand.

"This is a bad idea…" Irva muttered.

* * *

 ** _Town Centre, Radiant Garden_**

The crowd fell silent as Irva Torvald and June Caster walked through the town. Someone could not help but express looks of disbelief on their face while others tried their best to ignore the two, at least as long as June and Irva were within their immediate surroundings.

"This is incredibly awkward," Irva said through gritted teeth, trying to keep his eyes from wandering.

"What do you expect? You're basically a shut-in. This kind of appearance is pretty rare," June said. "Just smile and act natural."

"How exactly am I supposed to act natural when they're all staring?" Irva asked. He stopped in front of a group of kids and attempted a smile. They stared back at him with frightened and uneasy looks on their faces. It was a man who he assumed to be at least one of the kids' father who walked in front of them and guided them away from Irva.

"On second thought, don't smile. We have a lot of work to do," June said. She rubbed her chin as she examined the area. "I suppose the first thing we ought to do is get you some clothes. The armor you're wearing now is a little too intimidating to be among the general public."

"I thought you said to act natural. What if I'm most comfortable in this attire?" Irva asked, folding his arms.

"Oh, just come on. Who knows? Maybe you'll find something you like," June said. She dragged him over to a shop she had seen with clothed mannequins at the window and entered it. "See? Now how hard was that?"

"It's not like I haven't been in a clothes store before, you know? You don't have to treat me like a child," Irva said.

June ignored his protests and raised her hand, calling all the way to the back of the store. "Aloha! This guy needs new digs."

"Not so loud!" Irva whispered but it was too late. The assistant close to them was so surprised by Irva and June's appearance that his grip loosened on the empty hangers that he was carrying. They fell and hit the floor, though no one seemed to have noticed, far more entranced by those who had laid siege to their home. Once terrorists; now their rulers, or subjugators, some might say.

Irva walked towards the assistant and stared at him. The assistant looked like he wanted to back away but one look told him that he would only back into the clothing rack. Irva sighed and bent down, starting to pick the hangers up. Once he had gathered them all, he held them out to the assistant. Slowly and shakily, the assistant reached out for the hangers and took them before scuttling off as quickly as he could.

It was another person who took the assistant's place and judging by the badge on his shirt, he wasn't just a plain old assistant.

"You're the manager of this establishment?" Irva asked.

"Y-yes, sir, leader, s-sir," the manager stuttered out.

"At ease. I merely wish to… sample your selection of clothes," Irva said. June nudged him with her elbow causing him to flinch and look her way.

"Less formal. You have to be less formal," June whispered, though it was obvious that the manager could make out every word from their current distance.

Irva's face screwed up in concentration. "Er, right. A-hem. Yo, dawg. Can I get all up in those, um, threads, you got there? They look really… hip!"

The manager stared at him blankly before letting out a high-pitched, "Huh?"

June facepalmed. "I can't watch this."

"Well what do you expect when you throw me headfirst into something like this?" Irva snapped. "You think it's so easy, why don't you give it a try?"

June's hand fell from her face and she smiled. "Okay. Do you have anything that might look good on him? We're trying to change his public image."

"Oh! W-well I'd say something of the smart variety might fit best. I-if you'd come this way…"

June beamed at Irva who grunted and looked away annoyed. As they walked farther into the store it seemed that a number of customers and store assistants who had been watching had gone back to what they had been doing previously, although making sure to avoid coming in contact with the two Keyblade wielders.

They walked into a narrow corridor near the back and ended up in the fitting rooms. The manager bowed before returning to standing position.

"I'll be back as soon as I can with something you can try out," he said.

"Thank you," Irva said stiffly. The manager gave a quick nod and left the room. Irva looked at June and asked, "So what next?"

"We meet the people, you robot. We might as well start practicing now since I won't be able to help you when you're actually meeting them. Also, if you're anything like how you were when you started talking to that manager then you'll explode," June replied. "Let's see… okay, repeat after me…"

For the next few minutes, the leader of Horus found himself being tutored on mannerisms and talking in front of the public. As strange as it seemed for someone who wanted to lead a revolution, Torvald had received little in the way of education in regards to talking to the 'threads that stitched together society' as his father had referred to them as. Being home schooled had certainly been disadvantageous in what should have been a relatively easy task.

"Ah, I'm seeing a little more light in the darkness now. Still could do with some touches here and there but it'll have to do for now," June said. She turned around to see the manager reappearing with a collection of clothes in his hand. "Ah, thanks. Well, Irva, time for your dramatic transformation."

"Please don't make it out as if I will become some sort of new man," Irva said. He accepted the clothes and headed into the nearest cubicle. "I was never a fan of over-manufacturing my looks and personality just to appeal to another person."

"I think we need to look at the manufacture part of that before you can add 'over' to it," June answered loudly. Her eyes drifted over to the manager and she smiled at him. He gave what could only be described as an awkward smile in return and looked to the ground. After a while, June spoke again. "Did you enjoy my singing?"

"Huh?" the manager looked back up with a confused look on his face.

"Did you enjoy my singing?" June repeated the question. "You know, when we first arrived here. It was Bridge over Troubled Water. You can be honest."

"I-it was… good."

"Good. That's a bit disappointing. I wanted something a bit more than that," June said. "I know it's hard, adapting to change. Your way of life won't radically change. In fact, we will give you more opportunities than ever before," June assured him.

"Well, if it doesn't affect my wages then I'm not sure I care," the manager said. June chuckled and was about to reply when she heard the curtains of the cubicle being slid apart. In had stepped a man wearing the attire of a samurai, red armor emblazoned with black fire patterns all around, and out had come a gentleman dressed in a gray blazer and pants as well as a forest green waistcoat underneath.

He tapped his arm and looked at them both. "Well? How do I look?"

"Like a million munnies," June said with a wink. She swivelled on her feet and looked at the manager. "You know it's a good thing you were able to get a perfect fit right off the bat. Otherwise I would have had to kill you."

"Ugh…"

"Just kidding! That was totally mean of me, taking advantage of your fragile state like that. I apologize," June said. She gave him a grin before skipping over to Irva and coiling herself around Irva's arm.

"How much will it cost for these?" Irva asked.

"A-A-No, it's fine. I-I- couldn't-"

"It's fine? I ask of nothing more than you would treat me like you would one of your customers, because right now I'm not a ruler, and you're not my subject. I'm just another customer. How much is it?" Irva asked.

"28,000 munny," the manager said.

"Then I'll take it to wear," Irva said. After paying the amount through card, he and June emerged from the store to walk the streets with newfound confidence. Once again, all eyes fell on them as they walked through the immobile crowds, but this time the reaction seemed quite mixed. Irva was personally astounded. Could a change of clothes really alter perception that much?

"Okay, your first test is just up ahead. Go get 'em, leader," June said, slipping behind and pushing him in the direction of one of the food stalls where a young woman was working.

"You're confidence is inspiring," Irva muttered sarcastically. Nevertheless, he pushed up his chest and walked over to the woman. She ceased up and suddenly began playing with her hair. Irva started by holding up his hand. "Rest easy. I'm not here to take away your stall. I wouldn't want you to start ripping out your hair."

"Oh. Ha, sorry," the woman said, removing her hands from her hair. "It's a nervous tic of mine."

"And here I thought you were trying to impress me," Irva replied with a smile.

"Did it work?" the woman asked. This repartee between them had been one of the things June had mentioned in her short time of coaching him at the clothing store. Starting a conversation of with a joke to ease the tension… that was most certainly a check at this point. It had helped that the woman had at least given him something to joke about as well. He was worried his joke would have come across as forced.

"I most certainly am charmed," Irva continued. He looked down to the bread in front of her. He couldn't let the conversation drop for even a second. "So you sell bread here? The competition must be tough."

"Not really. I have an advantage over my competitors in that my bread is freshly baked coming right out of the oven. Also, even if I don't gain many customers, if I've managed to make even one person happy then I don't mind," the woman replied.

"That's quite commendable. I suppose if I want to keep you happy then I should buy something, Miss…"

"Katherin," the woman answered. "And if you wish to buy, I can make a recommendation."

"Please do," Irva said.

"Well, you can try out my new blackcurrant bread. I started selling them this week and I was hoping I could get the word out," Katherin said. Irva nodded and picked up the bread she had pointed to before biting into it. Along with the rather fresh sensation of the bread, there was also a fruity tasted provided by the blackcurrants, not too obvious but just about blended in so as to not overpower the taste and fluffiness of the actual bread.

"You've got yourself something here. June, come have a taste," Irva said. He handed the slice of bread over to June before returning to Katherin. "I have a suggestion of my own. You should sell jam along with this."

"Jam?"

"It would most certainly accentuate the flavor, no?" Irva asked as June nodded and gave a thumbs up of approval.

"I want more!" she exclaimed, licking her lips.

"Well there you have it. The first certified Irva rating granted by the leader of Horus. It doesn't mean much," Irva joked.

"I'm honored nonetheless," Katherin replied. "Please do tell as many as possible about this place. I know I mentioned that I would be happy if even just one person enjoyed my bread but it most certainly wouldn't hurt to have some stability coming in either."

"It is true, I could do that… I could also have you come to the castle from time to time so that others may experience what I just have and more. Up for the task?" Irva asked.

"I- I don't know what to say! Surely someone as lowly as myself is not fit to attend the castle," Katherin replied, blushing brightly.

"Is that what you think of yourself? You and I are no different from one another. Though we may come from different walks of life, when we meet in the centre, as we do now, you shall see no highly of me as I see lowly of you. I would be honored to have you and your relatives as guests at the castle," Irva said, bowing deeply.

Katherin seemed taken aback by this and smiled. "Oh, um… I thought we were equals."

Irva resumed his normal stature and looked at her slightly abashed. "Well, when I said equals I was also considering how small you are compared to me."

"Oh, nice save," Katherin said. "I'll think about it. But thank you so much for this. Really."

"It's not a problem. And here's the munny for the bread and please don't say that I don't need to pay. I've heard quite enough of that already," Irva said, handing over the munny. She accepted it and gave him a warm smile.

Irva had never really harbored any feelings for a woman up to this point and he could scarcely imagine what love was, though what he felt at this very moment reminded him of something. It was a smile he had seen before in his dreams, belong to his mother. Irva had never been quite sure if that smile had been real or if he had simply imagined it due to some longing for a maternal bond, he had never really known his mother after all—she had died shortly after he was born, according to his father.

"Irva… Irva!"

Irva snapped out of his trance and looked away from Katherin's mouth to her eyes. "I… very much look forward to us meeting again."

As he walked away from the bread maker, he felt June's hand on his shoulder. "Oh, how was that, buddy? You were amazing! Were you just pretending to not know how to talk to people this entire time?" she asked.

"I wish that were the case. Funnily enough, I don't think I was talking any differently than I do usually, but it still seemed to work?" Irva asked.

"Nah, you were definitely changed. You were cracking jokes. That's not like you," June pointed out.

"Oh. Well maybe I'll crack a joke or two from now on. I think I could be rather good at it if this was anything to go by," Irva boasted rather pompously.

"One or two jokes does not a savant make. I'd prefer you not embarrass yourself with hits and, let's face it, mostly misses," June dismissed.

"O' ye of so little faith," Irva said. "Still… I don't doubt what you say is true. I feel as though I was wearing a mask the entire time. It didn't quite feel normal. I can lead when it comes to war but if it weren't for you I'd have lost the real battle—winning the people's hearts, a long time ago."

"You exaggerate. You give up on yourself and you give up on the world. Think of it as a… learning experience. Revolutions live and die on the backs of their leader after all," June said.

"As well as those who support them," Irva added. "Which is why we must root out this traitor immediately. There is no room for uncertainty in revolution."

"Let's not ruin a perfectly good birthday so far. Hmm, let's see. Maybe we should drop by door to door next and see if we can stake out public opinion. See what we can improve," June said. She failed to notice that Irva had suddenly stopped and bumped into his back. She was about to scold him when he spoke.

"Are you okay, child? Where are your parents?"

The young girl stared at him and June with an intense dislike in her eyes. It was unlike anything they had seen more recently. The looks of fear, of those shifting their eyes every now and then, of smiles merely for the sake of being afraid to stand up… all those were reactions they were accustomed to. So then why was this girl different? Why did it seem like she had no fear of them? That she could stare at them with such unwavering conviction?

"Are you lost?" June tried with a smile. It faltered when the young girl gave her a look of disgust.

"You're the reason I can't see my mom anymore. Get out of here! No one wants you around," the girl yelled. Others nearby stopped to see what the commotion about, probably the last thing Irva needed at the moment.

"What's your name?" June asked sweetly.

"Stephanie," the girl replied, not one to be swayed by June's honeyed voice. "You won't win. Sora will come back and-"

"Sora?" Irva asked. "So you know him?"

"Yes and he's much nicer than you. He's my friend and a hero. If you think you can threaten us, you have another thing coming when he returns," Stephanie said. "And then things can go back to the way they should be. Before you showed up."

Irva smiled at this and extended his hand. "Well perhaps we can rectify your perception of us. Why don't we take you out for some ice cream?"

"Ew, no way you sick pedo!" Stephanie yelled, backing away from the hand.

Irva's aligned brows caved in. "Excuse me? Pedo?"

"Yeah. Pedophile. As in you. Who asks a young child out for ice cream in the first place without coming off a creepy?" Stephanie asked.

"What? I'm trying to be nice to you, you little br-"

"You really do like digging your own grave, don't you?" June interjected, elbowing Irva in the ribs. She looked back to Stephanie and grinned. "Sorry about that. He's just an old fart who's never really interacted that much with people outside of his social bubble."

"You say that, but you probably couldn't go a day without all that makeup and highlights in your hair. You might just turn old before your age if you don't look like a hag already," Stephanie added.

"…Lemme at her! Lemme at her, darn it!" June screamed, only for Irva to hold her back by the collar.

"She's trying to rile you up or did that makeup find a way to seep into your brain?" Irva said.

"Aw, that's awfully mean of you," June replied with one eye closed.

"I'll apologize later," Irva replied. "More to the point, you mentioned your mother earlier, Stephanie. What's her name?"

"Stephanie!"

Before Stephanie could give the name of her mother, another young woman, although much older than Stephanie, appeared from around the corner and ran towards the girl. She placed her hands on Stephanie's shoulders and gave her a light shake.

"Are you serious? Do you know how worried I was? What were you thinking just running off like that?" the girl questioned her.

"I had to tell these guys what I really thought about them, Ja- erm… mom," Stephanie said.

"Mom?" the other girl repeated with a raised brow. She finally looked in Irva and June's direction and froze.

"Mom, are you okay?" Stephanie asked.

It took a few seconds before the girl could reply. "Oh, yes. Yes, I'm fine, Stephanie. Sorry, I hope my daughter hasn't been too much of a problem."

"Daughter? I thought you said we were-"

"She hasn't been. It was nice meeting you both," Irva cut June off. He nodded his head politely before setting off in the opposite direction. June quickly and immaturely stuck her tongue out at Stephanie who repeated the motion right back at her before the two left with their respective partners.

"Why didn't you object, Irva? That girl definitely isn't her mother. She's way too young," June said.

"Because it's not our concern. If her mother's not with her then there's a chance that she might be with the insurgents. When we capture them, I'd rather not sully my blade with that child's mother's blood. Taking care of the leaders alone should be enough to quell whatever resistance is left," Irva said.

"Aw, you have a soft spot," June cooed.

"I can admit that I couldn't bear to see a child as young as her without a mother. I would consider it a failure on my part if something like that happened," Irva said. In truth, he would prefer as minimal amount of casualties as possible, even if that couldn't always happen. He was used to things not going that way, but if he could prevent a repeat of the past, he would already have done better than his father could have ever hoped to do.

"Lord Irva!"

Irva turned to see a man with jet black hair running towards him. "What is it, Evans?"

Evans saluted quickly, something Irva had told him not to do on multiple accounts, before standing stiffly. "We've found one of ours attempting to sabotage the air defence system positioned on the south wall. We've taken him back for questioning."

"I did not expect us to find the traitor so soon," June said. Irva nodded and began following Evans back to the castle. He could take some relief as well in the fact that since Evans hadn't mentioned Sabbat's name, he was certainly not the one who had betrayed him, though it was also too soon to say whether the traitor was acting alone.

The journey back to the castle was relatively quiet, save for the occasional humming from June. As he passed by, Irva admired the cherry blossoms, unusual trees that Irva had never seen before in his life, yet beautiful reminders of the early spring. In a few weeks' time they would supposedly be gone until the next year. As such, a lot of people could be seen hanging out under the trees, taking photos or having lunch.

June, who was also looking at them, looked at Irva and wrapped her arms around him again. "We really have to come back here before the day is over. I suppose this can be my present."

"It is nice, I suppose," Irva commented.

"Only nice? And suppose? You need to learn to convey your feelings better," June advised.

"I suppose," was Irva's reply. June sighed but smiled soon after.

Soon they reached the front doors of the castle and stepped through its doors. Paintings of the castle's previous rulers hung on the corridors all the way up to Ansem the Wise. He had heard from others within that he should hire an artist to add his own painting to the walls, but pride had never been of a concern for him. The end goal wasn't to see his name marked among others in the halls of history, but to forge an entirely new destiny altogether. One that would not take into account the mistakes of the past.

Soon they entered the main hall where a group of people were gathered. Upon the door opening, the unruly crowd fell into silence as Irva appeared in the room. All eyes were on him and his on the man who was on his knees in the middle. One person from the group stepped out. Her appearance was most unusual in that aside from the eyepatch that replaced his missing left eye, she wore a barely fitting navy captain's jacket and a captain's hat over a short dark blue dress. It wasn't what Irva would call battle-ready, but General Mari Seren seemed to prefer it.

"I'm sure Evans already filled you in on some of the details. When we brought him here, he says Mother's the one who turned him," Seren told him.

"Mother?" Irva asked. Mother wasn't hers or his or anyone's actual mother. It was what a woman, the leader of Cephadalus, called herself. No one knew much about her and had Irva the first idea where she was, he would have had her eliminated already. "And where did you come across Mother?"

The man chuckled and looked up into Irva's eyes. "Hehehe, in my dreams. Her powers are truly that of a saint. Think about that… I, a mere mortal, and her of divine will. She showed me that this world is truly and surely doomed. But she has chosen me to be saved. She has blessed me with her light, purer than any in this world. I am a lost child no longer. Hehehehe, it doesn't matter what you do with me. I am under her protection now. This shell I inhabit is merely a hindrance to the true goal—to return to her side."

"Shut your mouth, you rat bastard! After you, your precious Mother is next," Seren snapped. "It's a wonder how Cephadalus has survived for so long with her representing them. Bunch of misguided fools."

"Should I handle him or you," Irva said.

"You don't want to?" Seren asked.

Irva folded his arms and his back. "I prefer not to have my blade sullied in the blood of a delusional."

Seren smirked. "Hmph, and so mine is fine then?"

"If you're not willing to then let the giant have him," Irva said. He looked behind him, glaring at the deranged man who had once been one of his own. If he truly had met Mother through his dreams as he claimed, then turning him to her side was less because she could and more so to send a message. She did not need to fight them to beat them. He turned the rest of his body to face the man and walked up to him. "Either way, your life is forfeit."

* * *

 **A/N: So with Horus and Sora and Luna sure to come to ahead soon, I figured it might be good to give a bit of insight into their daily life. Next time we'll be shifting towards Aqua along with Kim and Ron as they head to the land of Kuzconia to find Drakken and Xanatos (and yes, I would not leave my dude Kronk out for the world). See you then!**


	32. Friendlier Skies

Chapter 31

Friendlier Skies

Aqua pushed through the doors of her home to find two Keyblade wielders clad in armor directly in front of her. With the two momentarily stunned, Aqua had enough time to stab her Keyblade into the ground. Shards of ice rose up from the ground beneath the two Keyblade wielders' feet, shattering with a satisfying crunch that threw them both into the walls.

Aqua pushed forward until she arrived at the Chamber of Masters where she had undertaken her Mark of Mastery. She placed her hands on the handles of the double doors and took a deep breath before pushing it open.

"Ven! Terra!" Aqua yelled. Up ahead, both Terra and Ven were sprawled out on the floor. Terra seemed to be struggling in an attempt to get up but Ven hadn't moved an inch since Aqua had entered.

As she took a few steps towards them, a voice grabbed her attention. It was silky and feminine, yet all too soothing for her liking. Aqua dropped to her knees and closed her eyes, gritting her teeth.

" _Why do you turn from me, dear? We all must seek comfort where we can get it. There is no shame in seeking respite from the chaos that is the world. Come into my embrace. Let me be your lighthouse in this sea of unfathomable darkness."_

"What am I… hearing? Who are you?" Aqua yelled.

" _I am the one you can always count on when needed. No matter how many times you deny me—deny the true light, I will always welcome you with open arms. Some may call me a saint, but formerly I am known as Mother, for that is the task assigned to me by God—to watch over and nurture children like yourself so that when the time comes, you are ready to ascend to the next world._ "

"There's no way… I don't want that. Please, I can't stand the light!" Aqua yelled, clutching her head.

" _You can't stand it or you don't want to stand it? You refuse to bask in its essence because you are afraid of the truth it holds. That too is natural, for we humans are accustomed to both light and shadow, but you have nothing to fear. I shall keep you safe, from rain, from cold, from storm, and you will see that when we emerge from deepest fog, it will be the rising Sun that greets us, my child."_

But Aqua didn't want to hear it. If there was some truth to her words, Aqua did not want to believe them. As sweet as her temptress' words were, she would fight against them with all her might to resist.

"Aqua! Aqua, are you okay?"

Aqua's eyes snapped open and she shot up, looking around her. Eventually she managed to focus in on a pair of blue eyes and vertical brown spikes.

"Terra? Are you okay? How's Ven? What happened here?" Aqua fired question after question only for Terra to hold up his hands.

"Woah there! That sure is a lot of questions. Well, I know I'm okay, though Ven, he suffered the brunt of that masked man's attacks."

"Masked Man? Nil," Aqua muttered.

"Nil? Is that his name?" Terra asked.

"I've been trying to figure that out actually. I doubt it's his real name." Aqua stood up slowly and walked over to Ven's side.

"Yeah, nil meaning zero or nothing, yeah? Sounds like a pretty edgy guy," Terra said. He attempted to chuckle but it quickly transitioned into a cough. He grasped his shoulder and winced at her. "For an edgelord though he sure does hit hard. Think he might have fractured my shoulder."

"Don't worry, we'll get someone to look at it but we need to get out of here first. They know where we are and I wouldn't be surprised if they tried attacking us again with larger numbers soon," Aqua said. She flung Ven's left arm around her neck and lifted him up. She summoned her Keyblade in her left hand and opened up a corridor of light.

"So we've lost our home again then? Must be a new record… for Keyblade Masters," Terra said.

Aqua chuckled. "Our master would be proud. Anyway, Sora mentioned that there was someone in a town called Middleton who we need to pick up. We can get you some medical attention once we're there."

"Sora? You met him? Hope that kid's okay," Terra said.

"He's doing well. Luna's with him. I also told them about The Wayfinders and where to find them. Hopefully they seek help sooner rather than later, though I also trust their judgements," Aqua said.

"We should get back to them ourselves," Terra said.

Aqua shook her head. "Not yet. I might have an idea on where David Xanatos is thanks to Sora. It's why we need to go to Middleton first."

"QUICKLY! THROUGH HERE!"

Aqua looked towards the door where the voice had come from before looking to the portal. "They're coming. Let's go!"

Terra nodded and without hesitation, the two (with Ven's feet dragging across the ground) jumped through the corridor just as the door burst open.

* * *

 ** _The Possible Residence_**

 ** _Middleton_**

"And that's basically the gist of it. If we want to catch Xanatos and Drakken then we need to leave as soon as possible," Aqua said, looking down at the murky brown of the coffee.

Jim and Tim Possible looked at her from across the kitchen table with looks of awe on their face. Kim who was to Aqua's left, seemed to be trying to absorb the information before letting out a smile.

"Well, I'm glad they didn't forget me at least. I can't imagine what they're going through right now. And here I thought I had it bad with high school and cheerleading," Kim said.

"You cheerlead?" Aqua asked.

"It's more drama than it's worth, trust me," Kim said.

"If there's so much drama then why not quit?" Aqua asked.

"Well… the cheerleading itself isn't so bad. It's also pretty good exercise. Just because there are a few rotten apples in the barrel, it doesn't mean the barrel itself is bad," Kim said.

"That's true. Cheerleading doesn't really hold that much of a place in my heart, but I'm sure it does yours. You should never let someone stop you from following your dreams," Aqua said.

"And what's in your heart, Aqua?" Kim asked.

Aqua blushed and glanced at the twins before returning to Kim. "Oh, uhm, I'll tell you later."

Their conversation was cut short as Ann Possible entered the room. Being a doctor, it had been rather convenient that the person who Aqua had come to seek the help of was also the daughter of someone who could help Terra and Ven.

"How are they?" Aqua asked with a fretful look.

Ann smiled at her. "Ven should be okay, though I would suggest letting him rest for now. Terra, on the other hand… I'm not sure what you kids are getting yourself into but he seems to have suffered a fractured humerus. It's the bone that runs from your elbow to your shoulder. More than likely he'll needed to be taken in for a proper x-ray and then after that, he'll need to wear a sling for a few weeks."

"Then I probably couldn't bring them along," Aqua murmured under her breath. She let out a sigh and looked back to Ann. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it. It is my job after all. Just don't take it granted. The last thing I want to do is become you guys' personal physician," Ann said.

"I would never place that kind of burden on you, Dr. Possible," Aqua promised. "Then I guess I can leave them here. Hopefully they'll be safe."

"We're going already?" Kim asked.

"I can't wait for Terra to recover and I don't want him to be alone either. I don't think this will take too long so it's not like I'll be gone long enough for them to miss me," Aqua said, or at least she hoped this wouldn't take long. The last time she had thought that a job would be easy, she ended up stuck in the Realm of Darkness for eleven and a half years. "They're still upstairs?"

Ann gave a nod and Aqua excused herself from the table. After telling them that she would be back shortly, Aqua made her way up the stairs and soon found Terra and Ven after a bit of peering into each room.

"Are you okay?" Aqua asked. She took a place on the bed that Ven was resting in and gently placed her hand on Ven's leg over the duvet cover. It was strange that she felt this way but even though he was so close to her, from the headboard Ven seemed so far away.

He smiled at her weakly. "You know I always wondered about the expression of seeing stars when you get knocked out. Yeah, not too fussed about questioning that again."

"He must have really done a number on you guys. Two against one and you still lost?" Aqua asked.

"Woah, hey now!" Terra then paused and sighed. "I was hoping to come up with some witty retaliatory comment there but I've got nothing. Though I guess I would have liked to see you do better."

"I did do better," Aqua said.

"Ooh, the sudden Aqua sass. Kairi's been a bad influence on you, huh?" Ven asked.

"Well, it is true that Kairi was involved in inspiring me to have a bit more fun to a certain extent. I just felt that, naturally, I could do with being a little more lenient on myself. Not coming to assess things through a mere cost benefit analysis but also just going with my gut from time to time," Aqua said.

"Wow… you know what? Forget what I said. Out with the cheek and in with the dry Aqua again," Ven said.

"The more things change, the more they stay the same," Terra added.

"Oh, I didn't know you wanted a broken leg with that shoulder," Aqua shot back.

"Oh, Terra. I think she's having an identity crisis," Ven said, chuckling softly.

"Well, I'm glad we're all in such high spirits to bully me. Now let's translate that energy into a quick recovery, shall we?" Aqua said with a steely glare that wondered from Terra to Ven.

"Yes, ma," Terra joked, inciting a snort from Ven. "Seriously though, even though I really want to get back out there, I'm not one to ignore the orders of a doctor. I know better than anyone not to rush so impetuously into situations."

"Yeah, right. You should have seen him, Aqua. He kept insisting that he couldn't wait for his shoulder to heal completely right up until the point where Dr. Possible had to reprimand him about it. All those muscles couldn't get you out of that one," Ven said.

"You faker. You should have been asleep during all that!" Terra moved to the bed only to recoil as he moved his arm a bit too high for his shoulder's liking.

"I hate to say it, Terra, but right now you are a liability. You'll only slow us down if we were to take you," Aqua said.

"Ooh, cold as ice," Ven said.

Aqua smiled. "The same goes for you, Ven. You both need your rest. Even though you're likely to be back on your feet faster, I don't want to leave Terra alone without anyone to talk to."

"So by _we_ you meant…"

"Kim and I. She has a stake in this too. Dr. Drakken for her and David Xanatos for us," Aqua said. _And with them both, the beginning of the end for KRONOS_ , she mentally added. There was nothing to say the remnants of the group would stop just because their leader was gone. With that said, it would probably throw the chain of command into awry. Backing them into a corner was the first step to making everyone's lives easier.

"Capturing Xanatos would more than likely increase our morale for the rest of this and lower theirs. It really does need to be the first step," Terra said. "Assuming we'll be handing him over to the Council."

"Theoretically, well, in a perfect world that would be the idea. But we have no reason to believe that Xanatos will comply or give up easily. Still, I'll try my hardest. In the new system that Neuge and the others are trying to create, people like Xanatos must face punishment. This isn't only about saving the world anymore but upholding our justice no matter how hard outside pressures try to squeeze it," Aqua said. "I must say— I'm looking forward to it quite eagerly."

"Well we still have a long way to go. But how are you planning to get there? A corridor?" Terra asked.

"Kim says she has transport available. She has a lot of contacts from her work," Aqua said.

"Yeah, about that. She's a vigilante, right? Doesn't even need a Keyblade. She just decided one day that she wanted to fight crime. She has more balls than me, that's for sure," Terra said.

"Yeah. I know we swore to protect the worlds, but I don't even know if I would be the same person I am today without the Keyblade or the master," Aqua said.

"Ah, come on. We couldn't change that much. The Keyblade picked you guys _because_ you were strong. Because it saw your potential," Ven said with a cheerful smile. "I'm sure that part of you guys would have shone through even without your Keyblades."

Terra smiled at him and eased forward carefully before placing a hand on his shoulder and giving him a friendly shake. "I hope you're including yourself in that too."

"Of course! I'm not a sad sap like you guys," Ven said.

* * *

 ** _An Hour Later_**

 ** _Middleton Lake_**

"This is our ride?" Aqua asked, moving to examine the strange craft from all angles. "What is it? A Gummi Ship?"

"A what now? It's an amphibious aircraft, a type of plane that can land both on water and land. What you're looking at here is the Dietfried T-20, the latest model featuring the latest in underwater corrosion resistance technology. You should be able to get there in about a couple of hours," Mr. Dietfried explained to them. While the corridor of light was still probably faster, Aqua couldn't hide her keenness. She could afford to sacrifice speed for style just this once.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Dietfried. I'm sorry this was on such a short notice," Kim said.

"It's no problem, Kim. You did help stop Drakken from getting away with my boat once so it's not like I don't owe you one," Mr. Dietfried shook off her apology, smiling at her, Aqua and Ron (who Kim had promised could come along a while back).

"Alright, let's do this. Oh, I'm so excited!" Aqua squealed.

"Yeah, you never get used to it. I still don't get him Kim just shrugs all this off. I'd be basking in this stuff for a lot longer," Ron told her.

"You'd also be tinkering with everything, eventually leaving Mr. Dietfried T-20-less," Kim replied. "Alright, let's get to work."

The four of them made their way into the plane with Aqua being the last and closing the door behind her. With the engine already started, Mr. Dietfried found his grip on the controls and in no time flat they were already moving along the water. Aqua peered outside the window, watching the tall trees from across the lake come in and out of view.

Soon, the amphibious plane began to speed up and up until Aqua felt like she could just leave all her worries and thoughts on the ground. The Dietfried T-20 climbed higher and higher and suddenly it was the trees that were below Aqua, not the other way around. The whole experience felt strangely exciting and yet also terrifying. As the plane tilted slightly, Aqua feared the worst for a second or two. It was Mr. Dietfried's calm and collected face that dispelled her nerves. She supposed if the pilot wasn't fearing, then she had nothing to fear about either.

The higher they went, the more green they were exposed to. Objects Aqua should have known to be mountains looked like mole hills from ten thousand feet in the air. It took an hour before they finally hit endless blue.

Aqua finally sat back in her seat and smiled to herself. "There really is so much to see in this world. I don't even feel like you can really appreciate what's on the ground until you've left it."

"Yeah. From here you think you can go anywhere, do anything… and then reality hits you once again as soon as you touch ground," Kim said. "For me, I suddenly remember I'm a teenager attending high school and facing the villainous threats of exams and cheerleading. And when you become an adult, it's not much better either. You tend to have these things called responsibilities."

"I imagine you could go anywhere you really wanted though, if you wanted it badly," Aqua told her. "Like becoming a photographer or journalist. Those jobs would allow you to travel to other places, right?"

"Well, I'm pretty content right now. Though I have no idea if I'd want to do this going into my adult life. Who knows? A journalist doesn't sound like a bad idea. By the way, you never told me about your dreams… back at the house?" Kim asked.

"Oh. I… well, I like making things like trinkets, bracelets, necklaces… I feel like if I could turn that into a shop… well. That's a dream far off from now. I have a job to do first," Aqua said.

"That's the embarrassing thing? And here I thought you wanted to make little dolls or something, and even that wouldn't really be that bad. I'll make sure your shop's a success. I'll even help you set it up if you if you want," Kim said.

"Count me and Rufus in too," Ron said. The naked mole rat on his shoulder gave a firm nod of approval.

"Thanks," Aqua said with an appreciative smile. And she too would do her part to make sure their dreams could become something real.

"You kids should get some rest. It's gonna be a long journey," Mr. Dietfried advised. Deciding to heed his suggestion, Aqua let her head sink back into the seat, her eyes watching blue skies that could stretch on infinitely. While that may not have exactly been true, it did make her think that perhaps her friends were looking up at the exact same sky, wondering the same things as her. Her eyes soon closed though she could hardly call it sleeping. Her mind was far too preoccupied with the mission ahead.

Her eyes opened again seven hours and thirty minutes later and not too long after that, she spotted the first signs of land in the approaching darkness. The moon just barely illuminated the shadowy landscape, but it was enough to leave a positive impression on Aqua.

"We're beginning our descent. I'm going to set us down by the coast, okay?" Mr. Dietfried told them.

"Thanks. I don't think we'll have any luck in the dark so the best thing we can do right now is find somewhere to stay. Hopefully we don't have to walk too far for a town or village," Aqua said.

It took another five minutes before the plane touched the water. It was only after the plane came to a stop and Aqua stepped foot on land that she let out a sigh of relief and stretched her arms.

"I am pretty hungry. Hope they have a Bueno Nacho around here," Ron said.

"You know, right now that actually wouldn't be a bad idea," Kim agreed. As for Aqua, she wasn't really sure she cared where they got the food from as long as she was eating something.

* * *

 ** _Village on the Mountain's Crest, Kuzco Region_**

As they exited the jungle that they had spotted minutes after traversing the coast. They spotted a rather large mountain upon which a small set of houses rested. Aqua stepped on to a field harvesting crops just before the mountain when a group of Wraith formed in front of her.

"Er, friends of yours?" Ron asked Aqua.

"Don't be ridiculous… Seriously though, what are these things?" Kim asked.

"They're called Wraith," Aqua answered. She activated her Blade Charge command and started throwing fire and ice spells one after the other. The spells smacked against the bony monsters with rusted keys but otherwise failed to push them back like she had expected. Aqua hesitated and looked at her Keyblade in confusion. "Why do I feel so… weak?"

"Aqua!" Kim yelled behind her. Aqua looked up just in time to see Kim racing forward and delivering a flying kick just as one of the Wraiths raised its blade to attack. Kim looked at her. "Are you tired?"

"No, it's not that..." Although what it was, Aqua couldn't say. It was as if she had just experienced an intense work out, but why had casting simple magic done that to her? She forced a smile and placed a hand on Kim's shoulder. "Don't worry about me. Let's just take care of these guys."

Kim nodded and resumed her fighting stance. Aqua ran past her and sliced and diced her way through the Wraith with Blade Charge still activated. As they stumbled out of position, Kim zig-zagged from left to right, punching and kicking their opponents to the ground.

"AAAAAHHH! Kim, a little help here?!"

Kim looked behind her to see Ron, be it by skill or simply by luck, avoiding and dodging under the aggressive swings of two Wraiths. Kim rushed forward and threw her shoulder into the Wraith on the left's back, the battle suit adding extra force to the blow. Aqua turned quickly and threw her Keyblade at the second Wraith, piercing it in the back. She air slid towards the Wraith and pulled the Keyblade out before spinning and lopping its head off. Pivoting on her foot once again, she jumped into the air and threw her Keyblade at the center of the Wraiths that were advancing in on them. As the Keyblade hit the ground, it created a shockwave that took out the group of Wraiths, leaving only the one that Kim had knocked do-

 _Oh, no, she's taken care of it. Pretty brutal too,_ Aqua thought as Kim drove her right fist deep into the fallen enemy.

"I hope the villagers are okay," Aqua said.

"You fight these things? All the time?" Kim asked.

"They started appearing a few months ago, just after the Heartless—that is, creatures of darkness—started disappearing. No stars in the sky, creatures terrorizing towns… it's no wonder some might say it's the end of the world. But I won't let that happen, or I should say, me and my friends won't let it happen," Aqua spoke calmly as if she feared nothing when in fact she did fear quite a lot. She was just awfully good at hiding it, and much to her own detriment at that.

"Well, it's gonna be the end of my world if I don't get some grub soon," Ron groaned.

"Well, let's see if there's any food at the village to fill the black hole that is your stomach, Ron," Kim said. Aqua chuckled before looking at the ground in thought. Even though she had beaten the Wraith, her magic feeling weak still troubled her.

They climbed the mountain to the very top where one of the houses lay. If the levels of the different houses were meant to be representative of their hierarchical status, then the house at the top most likely belonged to the village chief or whatever it was they called themselves.

"Water! Fresh, clean, water! Hey, this is already looking good, K.P.!" Ron announced. He ran straight for the water basin near the house and dunked his head straight in. After pulling out, he let out a loud and long sigh. " _Aaaaaaaah_ , now that's refreshing."

"You don't even know what that water's for. Someone could have used that to do their washing," Kim pointed. Ron looked at the water for a moment as if in sudden realization then started spitting and hacking as hard as he could.

"You actually drank it?" Mr. Dietfried asked with raised brows.

"Come on, have a little more faith in me," Ron said, although he didn't look at her directly. Kim walked up to the house and rapped on the door quickly. The door soon opened to reveal a young girl with buck teeth smiling at them.

"Howdy! Can I help you with something?" she asked sweetly.

"Hello. I was wondering if we could talk to your mom or dad?" Aqua asked.

The girl scowled before thumping her chest proudly. "Maybe I am the mom."

"Nice try, sweetheart," came another voice, this time of an adult woman. She soon appeared behind her daughter and placed her hands on the girl's shoulders. "My little girl, Chaca. And I'm Chicha, her mother. Don't worry, I have two more of these scamps if you've somehow gotten bored of the first one."

"Well, I have experience with handling annoying siblings so I'm sure yours can't be too bad," Kim said.

"Hello? I'm right here!" Chaca waved her hands about, eliciting laughter from everyone. Her frustration reminded Aqua of Ven whenever Terra and Aqua talked about him while right in front of him, deliberately of course.

Once the laughter resided, Aqua went straight to the point. "I don't know if there's somewhere we can stay for the night, is there? And maybe some food too?"

"Uh-uh, not maybe. Definitely. Most definitely need food," Ron interjected.

"You'll have to excuse my friend's manners. He tends to forget himself when food's on his mind. Which is frequently," Kim said.

Chicha chuckled. "Of course, you're welcome to stay here. My husband Pacha certainly won't mind. You've caught us at a good time actually. We were just about to have dinner. You're more than welcome to join us."

* * *

 **A/N: So here is probably one of the first times you get to see Disney heroes from one property interacting with Disney heroes from another property in this story. House of Mouse would be the exception to that rule and I also remember the Lilo and Stitch x Kim Possible X-over but Disney seem to be pretty strict when it comes to x-overing their heroes in Kingdom Hearts. Don't worry, there's a lot more where that came from. Next time, Aqua, Kim and Ron will start their investigation of the world and meet a certain emperor in waiting. See you then!**


	33. Aqua Goes to School

Chapter 32

Aqua Goes to School

Dinner proved to be a rather joyless occasion for Aqua, despite being able to finally eat after eight hours. Chicha and her husband, Pacha, were seated at the table alongside her, Kim, Ron and Mr. Dietfried, but there was no awkward silence between them. Pacha turned out to be an incredibly friendly man who held a strong desire to help his fellow villagers. Aqua didn't doubt that, but it was that desire that had now taken its toll on Pacha, both mentally and physically.

"You can't go an inch near the fields without those things appearing. Without that, we have no hope of growing or even gathering any food from them. We've been suffering a massive food shortage because of this," Pacha said. "The food on this table? It's just scant amount of what we have. The rest we conserve and give to the other villagers. Thankfully, there aren't many of us but, we don't have much in the way of reserves either."

"And you can't migrate elsewhere, right?" Aqua asked for confirmation.

Pacha shook his head. "There's no way to seek protection once we leave and even if we were somehow guaranteed safety, our family has lived on this hill for the last six generations. It's not easy to dash a legacy like that, especially over just one problem."

"It's not the most idyllic place, but it's ours," Chicha agreed. "Two days ago, Pacha returned home with a gash on his knees and a bunch of injuries."

"Let's not bring this up again," Pacha moaned but this only caused Chicha to lean ever more forward.

"How could I not? I was worried about you. And that wasn't even the first time you did it. You were just better at hiding the scars. You put yourself in danger just to collect a bunch of food," Chicha replied.

"And I would do it again! You want everyone to starve. The kids? Someone has to do it so why not the leader of the village?" Pacha asked.

"I mean, she has a point, Pacha. The food is important, yes, but did you stop to think about what it would be like for the kids to grow up without you? For Chicha to never see you again?" Kim reasoned.

Pacha's eyes fell to his plate before being obscured by his eyelids. "I don't matter. A leader puts the village before himself. A husband puts his wife and kids before himself. I just couldn't bear to see you suffer."

"And you dying wouldn't make us suffer?" Chicha asked. Throughout this, Aqua noticed a considerable lack of noise coming from the children's bedroom though Pacha and Chicha failed to notice this.

"Okay. Okay, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking about the family. Not enough anyway," Pacha resigned.

"If anything, you were thinking too much about us actually. I want you to be there to see the kids grow up. Don't you dare die on me all of a sudden. The last thing I want to imagine is that when I held you in my arms next, you'll be cold and lifeless," Chicha told him with a scary yet fearful look at the same time. Aqua wasn't sure about Kim, Ron and Mr. Dietfried but it felt incredibly disconcerting just sitting in on what felt like it should have been a private conversation.

Chicha seemed to realize this and cleared her throat before smiling. "Sorry, I got a bit emotional for a moment there."

Ron was first to wave it off. "Ah, no worries. Couple troubles. Happens all the time."

"But we do need to something about the food, that's for sure," Aqua said. She rubbed at her temples as she searched for a solution. It was only a few seconds before she realized the obvious. "What if we help with gathering food?"

"What? Oh no, we couldn't possibly put you in such danger like that. Trust me, you wouldn't stand a chance against those things. It must have been pure luck alone that you somehow managed to get up here safely," Pacha said.

"Luck had nothing to do with it. These kids are something else," Mr. Dietfried said, placing one arm behind his chair. "Those two over there once helped me with a robbery, and I'm not the only one they've helped. And this one, even though I don't know her as well, whew… she's got some serious fighting chops up her sleeve. I wouldn't mess with her if I were you."

"We fought the creatures on our way here. We can handle them," Aqua assured them, although she wasn't sure how long for. Their stay would be temporary and after they left, if the problem continued to persist then their intervention now would matter little in the long run. Still, for what was the foreseeable future, she wanted to give them at least some hope.

"You sure you can handle this?" Pacha asked.

"If someone's in a worse situation than you, you owe it both them and you to help them out. That's what I've always believed. Now that I know what's at risk, there's no way I can't not help," Aqua replied.

"Thank you so much. I don't know how to repay you!" Pacha exclaimed with a big grin on his face.

"Just a place to stay for the night is good enough," Aqua replied. It appeared that Pacha didn't seem too comfortable with just that but the last thing Aqua wanted them to think was that they owed their lives to a group of passing travellers.

After dinner was finished, pillows and blankets were provided to the group who had to make do with the floor, which was understandable considering that there wasn't another room in the house for them to stay in.

Aqua's eyes focused in on the ceiling. To her left, she could hear Ron's irregular snoring. That wasn't what was her keeping her up though. She pulled her Wayfinder out of her pocket and let it dangle above her by the string it was attached. It swayed left and right gently like ocean waves, very much unlike her life at that moment. She ran through the itinerary for tomorrow in her head.

 _Help Pacha gather food for his people, ask about any nearby towns, go to said town and find information on Xanatos… it's going to be a long day._

* * *

 ** _Yzma's Secret Lab, Beneath Kuzco Academy_**

 ** _Kingdom of the Sun_**

Despite being deep with the bowels of Kuzco Academy, and though the lab itself was sinister with many potions of malicious intent, the same couldn't be said of the two who frequented the lab. The two occupants jumped off from their rollercoaster ride and landed in their lab coats, high fiving each other before setting off to work.

"As Kuzco's graduation nears ever closer, I'm afraid to say that time is certainly not on our side. Not with our work with KRONOS getting in the way," Yzma said. "Time… hmm, maybe turning him into a clock will suffice?"

"That would annoy Hooky boy for sure. Say, where is that old codpiece of a pirate anyway? Haven't seen him around lately," Kronk said.

"Probably running from crocodiles. Ooh, maybe a locust. Crocodiles like locusts after all," Yzma murmured before shaking her head quickly. "No, that won't do. Argh, this is so frustrating!"

"I know the feeling. Why can't a good idea pop into your head when you need it?" Kronk said.

Yzma's eyes lit up at this. "Pop. That's it, Kronk. You're a genius!"

Kronk's eyes darted from side to side. "Uhm. Thank… you?"

"Hehehe, POP like a balloon. Kuzco will become but a bag of inflated helium and then when he least expects it, a lavish amount of brass pins comes raining down on him from above!" Yzma exclaimed with shrill laughter.

"Will you quiet down? I swear your laugh could wake the whole school up… and my precious Bebe."

Yzma turned and approached the third person who had been in the room since they had arrived. Dr. Drakken lifted up his welding helmet and set the power tool to the side.

"I swear your obsession with that little toy Bimbo-bot of yours in getting increasingly unhealthier by the day," Yzma said.

"Don't call her a bimbo! And toy? She's the latest in unmanned bipedal weaponry. Why, given a little more tuning she could very well easily surpass the Omnidroids," Drakken replied.

"Hah, no surprise this has something to do with Syndrome. I guess preoccupying yourself with things like this is the norm for virgins like yourselves," Yzma said.

"Shut up! I doubt anyone's ever even looked your way, you feckless harpy. Besides, now that Syndrome's gone, the engine of our ambitions can move forth unhindered," Drakken said.

Yzma gave a derisive snort. "Not bloody likely. When we started off we had sixteen members. After we got rid of Maleficent we were still pretty good on numbers. And now there's only myself, you, Xanatos and that masked boy who wasn't even a part of our team until recently."

"What happened to the Horned King, Davy Jones and Facilier?" Drakken asked.

"All gone no thanks to those Key-wielding brats," Yzma answered. "And don't get me started on Elsa. Looks like she got cold feet and chickened out."

"Heh, 'cold feet'. Nice one," Kronk pointed out, but Yzma gave him a cold look that caused him to back away.

"Well, Xanatos expects to get another god on his side. If he does, then they'll be a good replacement for Hades and she might very well turn the tide in our favor," Drakken said.

"It doesn't matter if we aren't there to see it. It's only a matter of time before they come down on us. I can only hold keep this disguise as Principal Amzy for so long before someone finds out I'm not who I claim to be."

"Wait… are you telling me that Principal Amzy and Yzma are-"

"Haven't we done this little schtick already?" Yzma shouted down Kronk before he could finish.

"How you managed to stick with that buffoon for so long, I'll never know. Guess you're a stronger woman than I give you credit for. Still, it would be good to have Shego around now. I haven't seen her in a while. Where is she anyway?" Drakken ranted.

"You think they got to her?" Yzma asked.

"They did. But it's not like I've never been in a jail cell before."

Confusion plain on their faces, Yzma, Kronk and Drakken turned in the direction of the lab's entrance where Shego alongside the masked boy stood.

"Oh, what optimal timing," Drakken declared with a voice dripping of sarcasm. "And it's taken you this long to come back... why?"

"Well for one, as much as I'd like to think this was some sort of _Shawshank Redemption_ affair, it wasn't. He busted me out. And I would have got out eventually on my own anyway, but as you know we were on a strict schedule. Got to say… this dude is cold. I at least play with my food first but he chews into it and tears it apart."

"Enough. Show them," Nil said.

Shego rolled her eyes and took out a chunk of rock from her pocket before chucking it at Drakken. "Party pooper."

"This… this is… I have no idea, what is it?" Drakken asked.

"A quartz crystal, crystallized remnants of energy directly from Kingdom Hearts itself according to Xanatos. His hypothesis is that not too long after the first meteorite shards fell across the land, residue from the energy within them started to attach themselves to the land. Combine that with dissolution of limestone that forms caves and Kingdom Hearts itself began to merge with the land itself, forming quartz crystal caves," Nil explained.

"I don't understand all the science clap-trap behind it but yeah, what he said. Of course, they're not exactly common. Caves made of quartz crystals I mean. Took a good while to find one," Shego said.

"Then with this…" Drakken walked over to the back where a cauldron was brimming with strange blue liquid and dropped the crystal inside.

"Hey, I went through a lot of trouble to get that, you know?" Shego told him. Prompted by the mad scientist's laughter however, Shego walked closer towards him with Yzma and the masked boy while Kronk stayed as far back as possible. "Wow. Reminds me of sentence in a book I once read. 'And as he stared into the depths of hell, he saw that which was unknown. And he was afraid.'"

Drakken frowned and looked up at her. "You read?"

* * *

 ** _Village on the Hill, Kingdom of the Sun_**

At the break of dawn, Aqua heard a rather unfamiliar noise that woke her up. It was a crowing sound—something that reminded her off her time in Neverland for some reason. She wasn't dreaming either, or at least she didn't think she was. When she finally got up along with the others, she brought up the weird noise with Pacha who laughed at her confusion.

"It's a rooster. You've never seen one before?" Pacha asked. Aqua looked on with her mouth half-open and Pacha laughed again. "Follow me."

He led her outside and down the mountain to a house on the left where a fence gated in five roosters who roamed about in their little playpen.

"Aww, they're cute," Aqua said, placing her hands on the fence. "Do they bite?"

"For you, maybe, though that's only because they don't know you yet. With a nice nutritional supply and simply establishing yourself as someone they can depend on, they'll never run away from you," Pacha said. "That said, I wouldn't exactly get too attached to them if I were you."

"I can't imagine why…" Aqua replied dryly.

An hour later, Aqua found herself in the fields, cutting through the occasional Wraith that popped up in the fields as Pacha, Kim and Ron worked tirelessly to gather crops.

"Come on! Put your backs in to it. We got mouths to feed and food to trade," she could Pacha yelling at Kim and Ron from afar.

"Yeah, yeah, okay… just give me a sec…" Ron sat on the ground and wiped the sweat off his forehead. As he made an attempt to block the Sun's rays with his hand, a Wraith resembling a Mandrake popped out from the soil and screamed, running straight at Ron who in turn let out a shrill pitched scream.

"Don't worry, I've got you!" Aqua yelled, casting a fire spell that took the Mandragora out. She finished taking out a Wraith that was trying to attack her while bouncing on a pogo stick before falling back to Ron's side and helping him up. "You alright?"

"I think I peed my pants a little," Ron whispered.

Aqua quickly pulled her hand away and looked away. "Too much information."

"What is even drawing those things to this place anyway?" Kim asked.

Aqua shook her head and looked to three out of the four baskets that had been filled completely. "They're popping up less and less now. Let's keep at it. I'll just be over here. Far away from Ron."

"Hey! It's not that bad," Ron said.

Over the course of the next ten minutes, only two more Wraith popped up and only one of which Aqua had some difficulty disposing off. The flying rabbit bounced and zipped across the field, though it never really seemed to be interested in going after Aqua. Not until she managed to land a hit anyway, at which point it retaliated by sprinting through the air at full speed and headbutting her in the chest, launching her off her feet. Aqua's right hand found the ground which she used as a spring to flip again and land on her feet.

"Aqua, you okay?" Kim asked.

"Yeah… that rabbit sure packed a punch though," Aqua said. She waited for it to come back round before firing off a blast of magic. Every time she hit the Wraith, it attempted to counter, forcing Aqua to raise a barrier that deflected the rabbit's attack. Eventually she managed to wittle away what little energy the rabbit had left before finally taking it out. She sighed and let her head hang back. "I usually hate puns, but I carrot believe the trouble that thing just gave me."

"We still have an investigation to do after this. Just reminding you in case you were hoping to sleep in for the day," Kim said.

"Of course you can say that when you get the easy job," Aqua replied. "Are we done yet?"

"Yes, actually," Pacha said. Aqua let her head drift back to its upright position and she looked to see that all four baskets had been filled.

"You don't know how happy I am to hear those words," Aqua replied. She rushed over and picked up the farthest basket to the left before following Kim, Ron and Pacha back up the hill. As they made their way back up, they passed by the other villagers who they were meeting for the first time. Upon seeing the food, the villagers smiled, waved and cheered for them. Aqua could only blush and smile sheepishly, not too used to the attention, and she certainly was too humble unlike the blond haired freckled youth next to her to react in any other way.

"Thank you so much. You don't know how much this means to us. To the whole village. We won't be forgetting your kindness any time soon," Chicha said. She and Mr. Dietfried had been standing at the front of her and Pacha's house, tending to one of the llamas.

"We're just happy we could help," Kim said. "Do you know of any villages or people who might know about any suspicious people around lately? Their names are Drakken and David Xanatos if that might help."

"I haven't heard those names, but you might be able to find more if you head to Kuzco Academy. It's a school not too far from here where our children go to, but it also serves as a secondary and high school," Chicha said.

"And you might also even get the chance to meet the emperor-in-waiting who can't be inaugurated as emperor until he passes his classes. Well, I suppose I'm not being entirely fair on him. He still used to be emperor. He even passes round sometimes and stays with us though because of the recent attacks I've told him not to come for a while," Pacha said, Chicha chuckling next to him.

"You're friends with an emperor? Dude. Dude. You gotta get us in with the king, ya dig?" Ron asked with a wink.

Pacha's smile took on a look of confusion. "I dig? Dig what?"

Kim pushed Ron out of the way. "Ignore him. I guess we'll head to the academy then. You're staying here, Mr. Dietfried?"

"I'm not exactly a martial arts expert. I'd just be getting in the way. Take it easy though, you three," Mr. Dietfried said.

"I'll take you there," Pacha said. "I imagine if you just head right into the school without a reason, they won't take too kindly to your presence."

"Thanks, Pacha. Alright, we'll be heading out again. Hopefully we'll be back before nightfall," Aqua told Chicha and Mr. Dietfried.

"Say hi to Kuzco for me," Chicha said.

Aqua looked at her quizzically. "Kuzco?"

"Well, that IS the emperor's name after all."

* * *

 ** _Kuzco Academy, Kingdom of the Sun_**

After crossing what seemed at a first glance to be an extremely unstable bridge, Aqua looked behind her to see Ron still trailing behind. His eyes darted left and right as he moved slowly along, grabbing onto one side of the rope with both hands.

"Ron, it's fine. You can make it!" Aqua called to him.

"You can talk. You're not afraid of heights!" Ron yelled back. He opened his eyes to see the rushing waters, hazardous rocks and crocodile snouts dipping out of the water and screamed. "THEY'RE GONNA EAT ME!"

Pacha laughed heartily. "Well, no need to worry in that department. It's pretty likely that the rocks will smash your head in first before crocodiles can even get to you and that's not helping things at all, is it?"

"No, not really," Ron said.

Meanwhile, Kim looked behind them and then looked back to Ron, yelling out loud, "Hey, guys. Looks like there's a Bueno Nacho back here. What lu-"

"WHEEEEEE!"

Ron moved so fast, it took a few seconds for Aqua to process that Ron was no longer on the bridge and was instead right next to her. Like an excited puppy, Ron's head bounced up and down, examining the surrounding area until he was finally sure that Kim's ploy had been exactly that. Both he and Rufus let out a resounding sigh.

"You lied," Ron said disappointedly.

"Chin up. I'll treat you to a free meal once we get back. Deal?" Kim asked.

" _Weeeelllllll_ , I suppose I can't turn down free chimirito and soda now, can we, buddy?" Ron said, looking down at Rufus who nodded eagerly.

"It _is_ free. Maybe you should go with something a little more expensive?" Aqua suggested jokingly.

"Hey, don't give him any ideas! A high school student only has so much money she's willing to dish out. I'm not an empress," Kim retorted. Aqua laughed and followed after Pacha. A few more minutes of walking took them to a giant building made of stone with the gold head of a scholar at its highest point.

"Welcome to Kuzco Academy," Pacha introduced. On the stone steps leading up to the school proper, several students were sitting and chatting animatedly amongst themselves in little groups. Pacha seemed to recognize a student and called over to her. The girl waved at him and left her friends' side, joining them at the bottom of the stairs.

"Malina, have you seen Kuzco around?" Pacha asked.

"Kuzco rules!"

"Thanks, Guaca!" Malina yelled back at the rather short and pudgy boy who had yelled it out near them. She looked back at Pacha and smiled. "Unfortunately, he's in detention after he and Ramon decided to play a prank on each other during class of all things."

"Again?" Pacha asked.

"Who are your friends, Pacha? Oh, are they foreign exchange students?" Malina asked.

"Not quite. These are Aqua, Kim and Ron," Pacha said.

"It's nice to meet you, Malina. There hasn't been any weird incident as the school lately, has there?" Aqua asked, getting straight to the point.

"I don't think so- no, wait… now that you mention it, Kronk has been acting pretty weird lately. He's one of our classmates. He just seems out of it and I tried asking him about it and he told me that nothing was wrong but if you've known Kronk as long as I have you'd be able to tell that something wasn't right. He's usually bursting with energy and enthusiasm, but when I talked to him then, there was a lack of that," Malina informed them.

"Could you think of any reason for the change in your friend's behavior?" Aqua asked.

"Not really. It was pretty spontaneous. Or maybe I just wasn't paying attention. I don't know if it has something to do with what you're investigating…"

"I can't say for sure either, but it's still worth looking into. Also, you don't know anyone by the names of David Xanatos or Drakken, do you?" Aqua asked.

"No… who are they?" Malina asked. Aqua's eyes wandered down to the notebook Malina was grasping and had clutched to her chest. Aqua had only been home taught by Master Eraqus and had never had the experience of going to an actual school, but if she had she could only imagine the pages and pages of notes she would have to write from multiple subjects. Strangely enough, Aqua could imagine having fun with it.

"It's hard to say. I guess if we want to put it short and succinct, they're bad guys," Aqua said.

"At our school?"

"Again, I can't say. They may have even left by now if they were aware that we were coming but this is the information we received and I'm pretty sure it's trustworthy," Aqua said.

Malina looked back up at the stairs where her three other friends were talking and then looked back. "Alright then. I'll guess I'll be your tour guide for the day."

"You will? Thanks a lot. I hope we aren't about to take you away from anything important," Kim said.

"Not at all. Just some meaningless banter," Malina assured them.

"That's the best kind. Anyway, I'll leave them in your capable hands. You wouldn't believe how much these kids have done for me and the village. They've saved us, Malina. They're something else," Pacha said in a soft tone. Aqua could feel Malina's eyes scanning her before moving to Kim and Ron.

"It was nothing," Kim quickly dismissed to which Malina smiled.

"Nothing? There's rarely ever someone who's willing to give up their time like that to help others for nothing. That's pure altruism right there," Malina replied. "Okay. See you later, Pacha. If you'll follow me, please."

After telling her friends about her sudden guide duties, she, Aqua, Kim and Ron ascended the rest of the way up the stairs until they arrived at the front doors of the school. The school itself resembled a giant temple made with incredible stonework and unparalleled precision and detail. It didn't favor style and it wasn't overly lavish but that was fine, because that unique design in itself added a charm of its own. Moving inside to the main hall, Aqua quickly noticed something that she had never seen before in most buildings she had been to—that the doors and windows were of a trapezoid shape. No matter what she looked at, wall niches, doorways, windows, all trapezoidal.

"Who's the principal of this school?" Kim asked as they walked up the stairs of the main hall.

"Her name is Principal Amzy. She can be a bit of a weird one at times but I don't put too much thought into it," Malina said. "Do you want to meet with her?"

"For now, take us to Kronk," Aqua said.

"Gotcha. So, what's your school like? Or what was it like if you've already left?" Malina asked. It was an unexpected question that threw Aqua off her normally serene self.

"Oh, we go to a place that's a bit… less stony than this?" Ron started.

Malina's mouth parted in intrigue. "Less stony, huh? I didn't think that was possible. And you all went to the same school?"

"Ron and I did. Aqua…"

"I was home-schooled," Aqua said in a tiny voice. It was funny how something that should have been so far off in her mind as a worry was the thing that was irking her the most at the moment. She had none of the experiences that they had. As much as she wanted to relate, she knew that it was a fancy. She could only ever nod and smile as Malina and Kim related to each other over their cheerleading. And homework, which apparently was something that was supposed to be really boring, was something she had to accept was the case without trying and finding it out herself.

Malina was the first to pick up on Aqua's silence and frowned. "I'm sorry, Aqua. I shouldn't have brought it up in the first place."

"What? No! No. Bringing it up actually makes me think. I've missed out on so many things. Things that I would've liked to experience myself so I could relate in the same way that you're relating now. You told me before Kim that there was so much drama involved in cheerleading, but as strange as it sounds, I still wanted to know what that was like. To have the opportunity. That isn't to say that I would give up my own experiences for them. I know that the road I've walked is different from yours and I'm proud to have walked it, but still… I do feel a bit left out, I guess."

"You have a point. How about this then? After you've found those bad guys you've been looking for, how about spending a day at our school? That way you can find out what life as a student is really like," Malina proposed.

Aqua stared on in shock, which propelled Malina to smile even more. Eventually, she somehow found a way out of her stupor and grinned. "If it were for even just a day, I'd be extremely grateful."

Despite doing her best to act in a professional manner, Aqua couldn't contain her excitement and her act probably wasn't fooling anyone. Her enthusiasm carried all the way to the third floor classrooms where they encountered a tall and muscular man.

"Oh, hi, Kronk. I was just looking for you," Malina called out to the man who jumped skittishly upon hearing his name and spun around to see them approaching.

"Oh, uh, Malina. How's your day been?" Kronk asked.

"Fine. Is something wrong, Kronk?" Malina asked back.

"Wrong… Haha, wrong… I mean wrong would imply something's not right in the first place, in other words something that's untrue…"

"He's hiding something," Kim stated with an exasperated sigh.

"Hiding? I'm not hiding anything! Or at least… I don't think I am. Wait… maybe I shouldn't have added that part at the end…"

"None of this matters. If we ask questions like this all we'll get are the same answers," Aqua said. "Kronk, it's okay. I'm here under orders from David Xanatos. He's not at all impressed with your performance at KRONOS. There's no use for such redundancy in our group."

"Huh? I've never seen you before at a meeti-" By the time Kronk realized his mistake and covered his mouth, it was too late. Aqua indulged in her victory with a smile and Malina gave her a sly smile and nod.

"Booyah! He didn't see THAT coming," Ron hailed.

"Uh…uh…you'll never take me alive!" Kronk yelled and broke them, causing Aqua to spin on her heels. When she finally recovered, she looked about to see Kronk disappear around the corner.

"Oh, not on my watch you aren't," Kim said, already hot on his heels.

* * *

 **A/N: Well the title technically isn't wrong. Truthfully, I remember watching those episodes with simple premises like Goku and Piccolo getting the driver's license and Spongebob going to boating school and pretty much decided to go with a simple title like that. Anyway, tune in next time when Aqua and co. confronts Kronk and Yzma and Drakken take their plan to the next stage.**


	34. Condor in the Sun-Soaked Valley

Chapter 33

Condor in the Sun-Soaked Valley

With knowledge of the turns and shortcuts of the school, Kronk was able to elude Kim, Aqua and Ron's capture for quite some time. Students walking down the corridor stopped and stared in confusion as Kronk and his pursuers darted past them. To give Kronk credit though, even if they had been chasing him down a straight line, Kronk's athleticism was such that it would have been difficult to stop him, not without the use of magic at least.

"Kronk, stop! We just want to talk to you," Aqua urged after having made a second loop around the floor. Though it was brief, she now at least had some idea of the layout of the third and second floor.

Kronk continued to ignore her and was about to take the stairs again when he bumped into someone, sending them both to the floor.

"Oh, sorry, Kuzco. You alright there, bud-"

But the slim teen slapped Kronk's hands away. "Hey. No touchy! Remember? Just watch where you're going next time."

"You're Kuzco?" Aqua asked. Kuzco looked at her for first time and was immediately off the ground, with his hands cupped around her right hand.

"Why hello there, my beautiful blue butterfly. How about you spread your wings and take us far away from here where the two of us can be alone in a cocoon of our love." Kuzco ended his flirtations with a click of his tongue.

"My, aren't you the poet? Sorry, but I need to talk to- Oh, no! He's gone again." Aqua pushed Kuzco aside only to find that Kronk had taken advantage of the situation. Aqua slipped past Kuzco and started on her way, only turning back to him to say, "Sorry, I need to go. It was nice meeting you."

Aqua turned the corner to see no sign of Kronk down the corridor. She quickly looked to the left of her to see stairs before deciding to take them down. She wanted to resist using her Keyblade if possible, but Kronk was seriously pushing her patience.

Relief came to Aqua in the form of one Ron Stoppable and his pet Rufus, who gallantly jumped onto Kronk's shoulder when Ron passed by him in the corridor. Rufus then proceeded to jump onto Kronk's head before scurrying all around his face.

"AAAAH! AAAAAH! IT'S EATING MY FACE OFF!" Kronk screamed, running around in circles.

"He's just as erratic as Ronald," Kim said, alerting Aqua to her and Malina being there.

"Please, I am so much cooler than this guy. Probably have a bigger fan base as well," Ron said, flexing his arms.

"Why are you running, Kronk?" Malina asked. "Are you worried that we'll tell Principal Amzy? It's okay. We're good with secrets, right, guys?"

"Well… most of us are," Kim corrected, glancing sideways at Ron.

"Alright… I'll tell you, but not here," Kronk submitted.

"That's fine by me. We can use one of the classrooms," Malina suggested. They ended up using the art classroom on their left. Aqua could smell the thick oils and paint thinner encroaching on the air, but she did her best to ignore it and took a seat at one of the students' desks.

"So why the secrets? Start from the beginning, Kronk," Malina asked.

"Okay… well you see, when mommy Kronk and daddy Kronk got to together, they decided to get married and have-"

"Not that far back," Malina cut him off through gritted.

"Oh. _Riiiight_ , you wanted to know what happened…"

"From the moment whatever's currently troubling you started, yes."

" _Goootcha_ ," Kronk replied with a wink.

Aqua frowned. "Why does he do that? I'm so confused."

"It was a day just like any other," Kronk started, gazing up at the ceiling. "As usual, I had finished going door to door to drop of the newspapers. Mrs. Hucklesbee invited me in for some delicious camomile tea. After that, me and Bucky, that's my little squirrel friend here, decided to head back to school all the while listening to my favorite artist, Squeak McSqueakerson. Did I mention I can communicate with animals?"

"Ooh, you can too? Hey, Bucky! Squeak squeaker squeak-squeak!" Ron called out, leaning in with an excited grin. Bucky jumped onto Ron's shoulder from Kronk's and replied back in incoherent sounds, at least to Aqua.

"Ron, we're here to interrogate Kronk, remember? Not the squirrel?" Kim reminded him.

Aqua's eyes flashed over to the squirrel before an idea popped into her head. "Actually, this might work to our advantage. Ron, can you tell Bucky that Kronk is in danger and that you're the only one who can save him?"

Kronk responded with an audible gasp. "AAAAH! Don't you tell them anything, Bucky!"

"So you really weren't going to tell us the truth?" Aqua said with a small smile. She had never thought it would be easy in the first place. Not if KRONOS was involved. "Even though I don't know you well enough, I don't think you're a bad person. I think you got roped into this, am I correct? Maybe you even felt out of place at times, but you're not going to find people who care for you with them and I think you know that. Kronk, if you feel that something is wrong then chances are that it probably is. It's not too late to walk away from this. Elsa knew that as well."

"Elsa? How is she?" Kronk asked.

"Lost, the last I heard from a friend. But she's making amends," Aqua stated. Kronk seemed to take interest in his hands during this though his strategic nodding told Aqua that he had been hanging onto every word.

"Elsa… she was always alone in the group. I tried cheering her up multiple times and I even managed to get a few chuckles out of her from time to time. Even though she was quiet most of the time, I could tell she appreciated me being there. And so did I. I know she had a hard time, but I didn't think she'd ever leave, and after she did, it crushed me. I felt like I had lost the only other person grounded in reality and not thinking about 'the big picture'. That's why I haven't felt like myself since. I'm sorry, Malina," Kronk said. The athletic and muscular youth just full of energy previous moments ago now sat vulnerable and fatigued, as if he suddenly expelled months of stress and pain that he had kept locked up deep inside.

"So then you'll tell us where they're hiding?" Aqua asked hopefully.

"Yeah. There's a secret passageway behind Principal Amzy's desk which is pretty weird considering it leads to Yzma's lab and I can't understand for the life of me why that is. The only problem there is that it's a ride for two. Fortunately there's some stairs we can go down instead but it's not as fun," Kronk said.

"I think both places might be worth checking out. Kim and Ron, I hope you two don't mind if I ask you to take the stairs while Kronk and I handle Amzy's office," Aqua said.

"Aw, why do I have to take the stairs? I wanted the fun ride," Ron moaned.

"Because you're the sidekick, Ron," Kim replied before looking up at Kronk. "Okay, show us where the stairs are and we'll take it from there."

The stairs that led down to the basement were located at the very back of the first floor in the trophy room. Sliding one of the trophy cabinets aside revealed a secret passageway that led deep underground.

"Looks pretty dark… we'll have to use the Kimmunicator as a light source," Kim said.

"Okay, just be careful down there, you two. If Yzma's down there, who knows what traps are lying in wait," Malina said.

"I'll be down there as soon as possible," Aqua promised them. After seeing them off, she, Malina and Kronk travelled back up to the third floor where Principal Amzy's office was. As she passed student after student on her way up, Aqua found herself paying attention to what they were doing. She took in little details, like their proximity to their friends or how informally they talked among each other, gossiping silly things of little to no consequence or crushes on other students in their year or even teachers.

She juxtaposed it to her own life, and realized just how different she would have been had she not jumped right into a world of keys and magic from a young age. Aqua had been eleven when she had first caught sight of a boy with slight spiky brown hair at the back staring at her. She would later know this boy to be Terra. Initially, she had thought him to be just incredibly shy, or maybe he was just weird, maybe even a bit of both. It was she who called him out one morning while pretending to admire the flowers in her garden and she couldn't even imagine at the time just how wrong she had turned out to be about him.

Terra was as mischievous as he was talkative. He was also a very opinionated person, sharing things that Aqua did agree with and quite a few things that Aqua did not. Those conflicts of opinion led to quite a few arguments down the line but it never really hurt their friendship. In fact, Aqua was quite glad to have her opinions challenged from time to time, she just didn't realize then some of Terra's opinions had more than credible value to them.

"I think I can trust you with this. You look like you can keep a secret," Terra said to her one night while they were out under the starry night sky. "But some of those stars up there are lights, and each of those lights represent another world aside from ours."

Of course, she wanted to call him out immediately for making things up. That should have been the logical response from such a statement. If he was fooling around with her, his composed look and voice sure didn't show it. What's more, what he had said to her seemed strangely, obvious? And a small part of her was disappointed, almost as if going "What, that's it?"

Instead she asked, "How do you know that?"

"Heh, I'm about to blow your mind," Terra said before holding out his hand. A key appeared in his hand, not as big as it was on the Terra of today, but adequate enough for his shorter self then. Aqua had been absolutely baffled at the time, and had her faith not burned brightly before, it certainly had after that. From then on, Terra had been absolutely convinced that he could teach Aqua to wield one as well and she was eager to be his student. Try as she might, she could never summon one. Then one day, Aqua remembered something Terra had once told her about where he lived.

"You said you lived in a school with your master, right? Maybe the secrets to learning how to wield one are in there. Can you take me with you?"

And so Terra broke the ancient rules of the Master's Keep imparted on him by his Master Eraqus and sneaked Aqua into the school. His efforts to not get them caught turned out to be for nought because Eraqus had been quick to catch on to his pupil wandering off grounds to the town nearby.

Aqua was almost embarrassed thinking back on it now. How she fell to her knees and begged Eraqus not to punish Terra. But had it not been for that, Eraqus wouldn't have been able to see her potential. It was those mixtures of emotion that started with anger and had ended in sympathy that had made her a Keyblade Wielder in the first place. It had been difficult to leave her parents behind to stay at the palace of course, but they weren't one to discourage Aqua and so after finishing an unusually early breakfast on a Saturday morning, Aqua set off and left whatever life she could have had.

Aqua's pensive gaze gave way to curiosity as she stepped into Principal Amzy's office. At first glance it seemed to be a normal room. A bunch of books placed neatly on shelves, filing cabinets for paperwork, a desk that seemed orderly and bereft of much except for a desk lamp and a mesh desk organizer full of stationary. There was also the principal herself, who had been standing next to the back of the room where a statue of a jaguar's head was.

"Kronk? And Malina? And this… have I seen you somewhere before?" Amzy asked, staring at Aqua. Something about it was quite unsettling, as if she were trying to undress Aqua with her eyes.

"I don't think we have, ma'am," Aqua responded in kind. "We were told by Kronk that your office is being used by someone named Yzma, who's hiding out somewhere in this school."

"Kronk told you that, did he?" Amzy asked. Her eyes quickly darted over to Kronk and that was the moment when Aqua realized something about Principal Amzy. She could feel darkness radiating off her. "You'll have to excuse him. He can be a little… over imaginative at times. I've known him for a while."

"You have? Tell me more," Aqua replied in a monotonous voice.

"Well, I've developed a special bond with him ever since he first arrived at the school, you see. He's helped me with a few tasks so I suppose I can consider him my assistant… sort of?" Amzy told her.

"That's all? Just a _few_ tasks?"

Yzma looked around the room for a moment before focusing back on Aqua. "Wait a moment. I'm the principal, I don't have to answer your questions! Why am I being interrogated like a criminal?"

"Why are you so bothered by my interrogation if you aren't a criminal?" Aqua asked. "I asked a simple question and you won't even answer."

"Principal Amzy, you should comply for now. I don't want to believe that you and Yzma are somehow connected but you're acting pretty suspicious," Kronk said.

Amzy glared at him and muttered under her breath, "You really are an idiot."

"Hm? What was that?" Aqua asked, pretending not to have caught Amzy's words.

"Nothing. Nothing. Sorry, I'm just a bit stressed from all the work that needs to be done. Perhaps, you can come back in an hour and I'll be happy to answer your questions," Amzy offered.

Aqua looked towards Amzy's notably tidy desk before looking back at Yzma. "I'm sure you are. We'll be taking our leave now."

"Don't be strangers," Yzma replied with a forced smile. Aqua nodded and headed for the door when Amzy interrupted again. "Oh, and Kronk?"

Kronk ceased up before slowly turning around. "Yes, Principal Amzy?"

"I need your help with a few of these papers. Mind staying behind?"

"Uh..." Kronk looked back and forth between Amzy and Aqua.

Aqua smiled and nodded. "We'll see you soon, Kronk."

With that, Aqua and Malina left the room. As soon as the door closed behind them, Malina leaned against the wall and stared up at the ceiling.

"I thought on three separate occasions about jumping out the window in that room," she said.

"Sorry for the scare. But there's definitely something up with this Amzy person," Aqua said. She looked at Malina and smiled. "I think this is as far as you can go."

"What?"

"I've just painted a massive target on my back. I can't allow an innocent bystander to be endangered. I'm going to catch up with Ron and Kim."

"Aqua?" The blue-haired girl looked back at Malina as she was about to walk off. On Malina's expression was not a look of resistance nor was it entirely compliant, but it was one of understanding. "Be careful."

"I will," Aqua said. Aqua set off into a run and made her way down the stairs. She got only as far as the second floor when she felt a metallic hand slam against her chest, launching her back into the wall. Students in the hallway stopped and looked on in horror as a robot woman stood with a hand on her hips and staring down at the girl she just attacked.

Rather than fearing for her own safety, Aqua quickly looked at the other students wide-eyed. "What are you doing? Run!" Aqua yelled. The students became unparalysed at her order and took off at once.

"A valiant effort, but ultimately pointless. You've done little to increase your own chance of survival. In fact, you've just decreased it," the robot said.

"If you think protecting innocent people is pointless, then I'd say that speaks louder volumes about you than me. What are you supposed to be anyway?"

"I am Bebe and I am here to destroy you," the robot said before throwing her first at Aqua. Aqua leaned out of the way and looked back where her head had been to see a fist-sized hole through the wall.

"Guess I know too much?" Aqua joked as she summoned her Keyblade. Lashing out, she deflected the oncoming punch and quickly moved out of the way. Back on her feet, she spun around to face Bebe and Fission Firaga. Bebe crossed her arms and placed them in front to defend, or at least that's what Aqua had assumed. To her surprise, the blast of magic bounced off the robot's wrists and headed back for Aqua. With little time to move out of the way, Aqua raised her Keyblade. A heavy weight smashed into her and flipped her off her feet, sending her spiralling back to the floor.

Aqua let out a grunt and was about to get up only to step as she realized that Bebe was right near her.

"Huh, how-" Aqua didn't get to finish her question as Bebe kicked her in her side, sending Aqua rolling onto her back.

"Why so surprised? I'm stronger than you!" Bebe proceeded to lift Aqua up into the air with one hand and threw her into a wall. "I'm faster than you!" And then in no time at all she was in front of Aqua once again and backhanded her to the ground. "I'm superior to you in every way!"

"Well now you just sound childish," Aqua murmured. She slowly stood back up and looked to her right to see Kuzco coming down the stairs. She quickly flung an ice spell in his direction, gluing his left foot to the stair. She then turned quickly and parried each of Bebe's strikes.

"Ooh, two hotty hot hotties duelling it out over me? I'm flattered. Malina, aren't you going to join in?" Aqua could hear Kuzco yell as she fought with the femme-bot. Aqua jumped back before creating a sheet of ice on the ground in front of her. As Bebe ran towards her, her acceleration soon became a detriment as she slipped on the ice and fell backwards.

"Aqua, are you okay?" Malina asked, appearing on the stairs behind Kuzco.

"Looks like they retaliated quicker than I thought! Malina, get Kuzco out of here!" Aqua said, shooting a fire spell to break the ice attaching Kuzco to the stairs. He breathed a quick sigh of relief that was cut short by Malina dragging him back up the stairs.

Aqua beckoned with her hand at Bebe before setting off down the hall.

"So you want me to follow you? Haven't you learned by now?" Bebe yelled, sprinting at full speed. Aqua placed a Seeker Mine down on the ground quickly and stopped just behind it. As Bebe's right leg stepped onto the mine, it exploded, taking her leg clean off.

"AAAAH! Damn you!" Bebe cried as she struggled to get back up.

"Ooh, that's a lot of emotion there for a superior being. Or maybe you're not nearly as superior as you think you are," Aqua said.

"Hehe, aren't you cute, thinking you've got the best of me? But you'll find I'm just full of surprises," Bebe said. The joints of her last leg and arms bent at an odd angle until they resembled spider legs. Bebe sprang forward about to attack Aqua when Kronk appeared and rammed into the robot with his shoulder.

"Hey, get off me!" Bebe screamed in protest, kicking about between Kronk and the wall she was plastered too.

"Aqua, you won't believe what just happened. Looks like Amzy and Yzma are… the same person!" Kronk said.

"Err, yeah…? I already figured as much," Aqua said with a muddled stare.

"Oh. Yeah, Malina said the same thing. Huh. Was I the only one who didn't know?" Kronk asked, placing his index finger on his chin.

"Maybe you're just an idiot," Bebe retorted.

"Hey! That's not nice. Take that back!" Kronk whined.

"Or maybe I'll just take you out," Bebe said, before lighting up in a flashing display that electrified Kronk.

"Oooo-yep, that's a Krispy Kronk right there," Kronk groaned before falling forward.

"Kronk!" Aqua yelled, but she had to look away from him quickly when she heard a beeping sound, slow at first but gradually picking up speed between intervals by the second. She turned quickly and ran, clearing some distance between her and Kronk. Meanwhile, Bebe was in hot pursuit, which was fine as long as Aqua could get her away from him. When she was a safe enough distance, Aqua raised her barrier just as the intermittent beeping became a long stringed beep.

" _HNGH_!"

Despite her barrier being raised, the explosion was enough to throw her off her feet and onto the floor a few metres away. She slowly turned her head to the right to see pieces of indistinguishable metal scattered on the floor. Aqua did a few breathing exercises and took a moment to gather her thoughts before heading over to Kronk.

"You okay?" Aqua asked.

"Well, they say lightning never strikes the same place twice so I'll be okay… I think," Kronk replied from the ground.

"I mean, technically you were electrocuted and it actually can hit the same place twice but it's all whatever, right? Thanks for saving me Kronk," Aqua said. Suddenly realizing where she needed to be and what the distraction had amounted to, Aqua stepped back as if in shock. "Oh no! Kim and Ron might be in danger. I'm sorry Kronk, I need to go."

"It's alright. Oh yeah, Yzma's not in her office. Should be able to take… the secret passage…" Kronk said. "I'd show you but… can't move my legs at the moment."

Aqua chuckled. "Don't overexert yourself. Thanks, Kronk."

Aqua went back up the stairs to the third floor and jogged down the hallway to Yzma's room. She looked left and right as she went down the hallway but she could find no sign of Kuzco or Malina. Thinking they may have already evacuated or that perhaps they were waiting for her in the principal's office, she thought very little about it.

As she reached for the door leading to the principal's room, the entire school shook violently and Aqua herself almost fell over.

"What the hell was that?"

* * *

 ** _Yzma's Lab, Underneath the School_**

Kim reached the end of the narrow passage leading downwards to find a door obstructing her path. Suddenly she felt something bump into her from behind and spun around angrily to see Ron who gave her a weak smile.

"Oops. Sorry, hehe," Ron laughed it off.

"Shush," Kim whispered. For all they knew, their enemies could be right on the other side of the door. Even Rufus, seeming to understand this, popped out of Ron's shirt and placed one of his tiny claws to his mouth.

Kim placed a hand on the handle and counted down from three fingers before pushing down and throwing open the door. The foul and oppressive atmosphere of the lab seemed only amplified by the classical music that rang loudly throughout. Strange liquids in flasks lined the various shelves in the room and to her left she could see a small waterway running through the lab and past a gate on the other side of the room. Considering the elevation of the school, if the water led out of the building then it was safe to say it joined with a bigger river that led to a waterfall.

"Well if it isn't Kim Possible," a familiar voice came from behind her followed by the sound of the door they had come from closing shut. Dr. Drakken stood there dressed in a bathrobe, a tobacco pipe in his hand. It would have been easy for Kim to have missed him when coming in considering the partition near the door that blocked off a part of the room from view upon entering. Suddenly, there was the sound of feet landing behind Kim and she turned back to see Shego. Dr. Drakken gave a sly smile and approached her. "Enjoying the music? It's Symphony No.9 in E Minor "From the New World"."

"Oh yeah, evil villain playing classical music. Totally not cliché," Ron replied sarcastically.

"Oh, shut up! At least I have a theme song, rat boy," Drakken spat.

"He's a mole rat!" Ron yelled back.

 _It's a small world after all_

 _It's a small world after all_

 _It's a small world after all_

 _It's a small, small world_

"What is that infernal sound? Will someone please shoot my ears off?!" Drakken yelled over the sudden strange sound overlapping with the music already in the room.

"Oops, sorry. My phone. Forget to put this thing on silent," Ron said, digging into his pocket. He pulled out his phone and held it up to his ear. "Hello? Yeah, I'm kind of in the middle of something right now. Stopping an evil genius from conquering the world and all that? You know, the usual. Yeah, Kim's with me right now. Oh. Yeah, I can do that. Kim, Monique said hi."

An annoyed Kim swiped the phone from Ron and said so ever so sweetly, "Monique, we're really busy right now. Could we do this when we get back?"

"Of course, girl. You do you. I'll see you at school," replied Monique's modulated voice on the other end of the line. Kim uttered her thanks before ending the call and handing it back to Ron.

"You done yet?" Dr. Drakken asked while inspecting his nails.

"Yep. Thanks for waiting. Aaaaaand evil monologue resume…" Kim said.

"I haven't even started it yet," Drakken retorted. He cleared his throat rather exaggeratedly and then went back to smiling. "The day has finally come that you will rue the moment we ever crossed paths. This is the day of turning tide, in which I shall emerge victorious and you grovelling and begging at my feet for mercy."

Kim's face scrunched up in a grimace. "No. Still can't picture it."

"At least have an imagination! Shego, take care of them!" Drakken ordered.

"If you say so, your royal blueness," Shego said, uncrossing her arms. "Long time no see, Kimmy. You done hiding behind your little Keyblade-wielding friends' backs?"

"Only if you're done being Drakken's failure of a lapdog," Kim replied. Shego ran forward and twisted before delivering a backwards kick. Kim evaded the attack and grabbed Shego's leg, twisting it and Shego's entire body with it, sending her to the floor. Shego performed a leg sweep, knocking the unsuspecting Kim down as she got back up.

Kim kicked upward and landed back on her feet before exchanging a series of punches with Shego. Neither one seemed interested in blocking the punches either, letting them land but determined to stay standing. Shego soon ended this exchange by jumped high and kicking at Kim's chest, knocking her back into a shelf full of different colored potions. Glasses shattered, their contents spilling to the floor and spreading out.

Ron, Rufus and Drakken watched in horror from afar as Kim and Shego continued to duke it out, unaware of their transformations. Eventually they both noticed the weird looks the boys were giving them and asked in unison, "What?"

"Um… how do I put this… you could give Monkey Fist a run for his money," Ron said to Kim.

Kim frowned and looked down to see red fur all over her body. She let out a loud howl akin to a Howler Monkey. "Ron, I swear if you tell anyone of this, I'll kill you."

"And Shego… well, can't say I notice the difference," Drakken told her with a smug smile. Shego's body had transformed into a cobra just as pale green as she had been in her original form.

"You have got to be kidding me. Yzma and her stupid potions… Well? Don't just stand there like an idiot. The antidote has to be around here somewhere," Shego yelled at her boss.

"Yes, ma'am," Drakken said with a gulp before racing off for the other side of the lab.

"Ron, don't let him get a headstart!" Kim exclaimed.

"On the case, K.P," Ron said before taking off after Drakken. Meanwhile, Kim and Shego eyed one another, circling around their small space.

"Body or not, I still bite hard," Shego said before lunging in. Kim jumped high and flipped over the cobra Shego. Spinning around, Kim slapped Shego's face with her monkey paw, causing the cobra's head to recoil at a lengthy angle.

While Kim and Shego were involved in their game of monkey and snake, Ron and Drakken searched frantically throughout Yzma's lab for some form of cure. Drakken reached a shelf labelled 'Experimental' first and then tried to block Ron off while simultaneously trying to search for the antidote.

"Rufus, go, buddy!" Ron called. Rufus leapt of Ron's shoulder and began attacking Drakken's face, forcing the evil genius to abandon the shelf. Ron replaced him and visibly gulped as he examined the myriad of flasks available to him.

"Ron, hurry up!"

Ron turned around to see Kim climbing onto a counter to avoid Shego's bites. Ron looked back to the counter and closed his eyes, moving his hand around. When he opened them, his hand had found a flask of red liquid on the third row of the shelf. Ron grabbed it and waved at Kim.

"Kim, I found it!" Ron yelled. Just as he was about to move, Drakken, who had still been struggling to take Rufus off his face, bumped into Ron. The flask flew out of his hands, sailing through the sky as a result.

"Noooooooooo!" Things seemed to fall into slow motion as both Drakken and Ron scrambled to reach out for the flask. It was at this moment of inconvenience, that Yzma arrived in the lab.

"Drakken, we have a big problem on our hand- GAAAAH!" Yzma flinched as the flask shattered in front of her, spilling out onto her. Even Kim and Shego stopped fighting to watch.

Ron placed both hands on the sides of his head in disbelief and screamed. "AAAH! Quick, Kim. Lick the antidote off Yzma before it's too late!"

"OOH, I mean, ew, that's disgusting, Ron!" Kim refused. "I'm sure there's more than one antidote there. Keep searching."

"You idiots! That isn't the shelf with the antidotes. That's for the Chimera-HNGH!" Yzma doubled over and clutched at her arms. Her entire body was shaking in fear and her eyes wide and unmoving.

"Yeah. I'll get to that… K.P? Looks like we have a problem. A big problem," Ron said. Kim and Shego looked past him to see Yzma growing in height and width.

"You know, somehow I get the feeling that wasn't the antidote," Drakken said, stepping back more and more as Yzma grew. Jet black feathers sprouted out from her back and her mouth morphed into a curved yellow beak.

* * *

 ** _Yzma's Office, Kuzco Academy_**

Aqua waited until she was sure that the tremor had ceased before opening Principal Amzy's door. Malina and Kuzco were standing at the back of the room by the statue of the jaguar head.

"Earthquakes don't happen to be a regular thing around here, right?" Aqua asked.

"Never something like-"

"Get down!" Aqua yelled, spotting something fly past the window. She quickly ducked behind the desk as the wall was smashed in and chunks of stone flew everywhere. Slowly raising her head, Aqua stared at the giant condor that was peering in from outside the room.

"Oh, sorry, am I intruding?" the Condor spoke with a familiar voice.

"Yzma, is that you? Oh, boy, the days have not been kind," Kuzco said with a grimace.

"Well, if it isn't just the person I was looking for? You're looking rather pale, Kuzco. Perhaps you just need a fresh perspective on life," Yzma said. Without hesitation, she stretched forward as far as she could and grabbed Kuzco with her beak before pulling him out of the room and taking off into the sky.

"Kuzco! Oh no, what do we do, Aqua?" Malina asked, still watching from the back of the room in horror.

"Stay here. I'll be back soon," Aqua said, walking towards the giant hole in the wall.

"But you can't possibly catch them. They're flying!" Malina pointed out. Her rationale seemed lost on Aqua who jumped right out of the hole, leaving Malina to the point of stupefaction. "She jumped. She just jumped... Huh."

Malina took a single step when it happened. A whoosh followed by Malina's hair flying upwards from the burst of wind sent Malina grinning widely.

"Go get her!" Malina cheered, jumping up and down as she watched Aqua fly off with her glider.

Aqua dodged and weaved through the air as Yzma turned around every now and then to attack with projectiles of blue energy shooting out with a heavy flap of her wings. With another round of energy blasts fired her way, she quickly pulled an inside loop, pulling upwards until she was properly levelled again. She looked behind her to see a defaced cliff as a result of the blasts making impact.

 _I have to get closer_. _Come on_ , Aqua willed in her head, as though the thought alone would be enough of a boost to propel her forward. It had no effect of the sort obviously, but it was worth repeating every once in a while to keep herself focused on the goal. What she had not counted on was Yzma stopping for her.

"What? Getting tired? Let Kuzco go," Aqua demanded.

Yzma tilted her head to the side before moving closer towards Aqua. Once close, Yzma leaned forward as if to allow Aqua to take possession of Kuzco, only to let him slip from her mouth and fall instead.

"Oops. Guess my grip's not as good as I thought," Yzma said, letting out a howl of laughter. Aqua glared at her before pushing forward on her glider as much as she could. She faced downwards, giving her a clear view of Kuzco and the area below him. They were directly below the bridge she, Kim and Ron had crossed on their way to the school. Even were Kuzco to somehow survive falling into the river, the crocodiles would be waiting for him.

Aqua shot off towards him, digging her palms into the handle of her Keyblade in hopes of accelerating. When she felt she was close enough, she reached out and grabbed his flailing hand before spinning the glider around, causing Kuzco to rise above her. Kuzco soon landed on the edge of her glider and with nothing to balance himself out, immediately clung to her.

"Um… where do you think you're touching?" Aqua asked uncomfortably. Kuzco opened one eye and looked down to where his hands were placed.

"Sorry, sorry," Kuzco apologized, quickly taking his hands away. "I mean… they weren't bad if it makes you feel better."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Do you want me to drop you back off where I caught you? Because now that I think about it, it was rather cruel of me to deny those crocodiles their meal," an angry Aqua replied.

"No, no, I- uh, quite like keeping this head of mine attached to my body," Kuzco said. Aqua continued flying at a low altitude until there was safe ground for Kuzco to get off.

"Head back to the school. I have a condor to swat," Aqua said, not waiting for him to reply before taking off. She pulled the handle of her glider out of positon, changing the glider itself into more of surfboard. Propping the handle-turned bow up, she placed her other hand on it and drew back, creating an arrow of blue light as she did so.

Despite having done this many times before, this time was different. Her face was sweating, her teeth clenched and her eyes starting to become unfocused as she tried to hold onto the arrow. Something was wrong with her magic.

 _Ah, what is happening? Come on, not now. Not when I'm so close,_ Aqua thought. She just needed to hold it for a little longer. Just a little longer… Aqua looked down to her hand and there she saw something that freaked her out. A blackness as pitch as midnight was crawling onto her skin, or maybe it was her skin that was peeling away to reveal the black. Whichever it was, she started to panic. She was finding it difficult to breathe. Her hand somehow found its way to her throat and began massaging it, pressing in deeper as the seconds passed.

"What's… happening to me?" Aqua asked.

" _You should know better than most, my dear_ ," the silky voice of the woman who had spoken to her in the Land of Departure snaked its way into her head. " _The true state of this world lies in chaos. The world was born in chaos, and our tiny lights filled that void with meaning, from which order was birthed. But order, much like our hearts, is fleeting. This world is doomed to return to its original state. Your body lives to return to chaos. To the true you._ "

"Stop talking nonsense," Aqua managed to get out in a raspy voice as her grip on her throat tightened. "Let me go!"

" _What ever do you mean? I'm not the one doing this to you. You are, or perhaps I should say your subconscious. And I assure you, it is not nonsense. Kingdom Hearts has a far greater purpose past the birthing and returning of hearts. At its very own core lies the truth of your existence and all those you hold dare. But you need not hear that right now. I hate to see you suffer. I will gift you some of my own light, child, mainly to help you and partly in hopes that it will guide you to me. Now you might want to open your eyes unless you can aim well and true without."_

Aqua's eyes opened. Her hand wasn't around her throat, but instead still holding onto the arrow. Her skin was also perfectly normal. She wanted to question it but she didn't have time. She shook her head to clear her thoughts and instead took aim on the condor in front of her.

"Bullseye," Aqua said when she found her mark, and fired the arrow. Unlike an actual arrow, there was little need to adjust for wind direction. Like a lightning bolt, the energy arrow flew straight at its target, hitting Yzma in the back. Yzma let out a loud screech and crashed into a valley nearby. Aqua landed on the ground and changed her Keyblade back to the original, watching as the condor reverted back to Yzma's human form. Before she could get back up, Aqua used Bind, casting an invisible rope that tied her up and stopped her from moving. "Yzma! Where's David Xanatos?"

"Not here. Looks like you've missed him."

It was not Yzma speaking to her but a cold and heavily modulated voice. Aqua spun around to see Nil looking back at her, a strange sword with seven branches extending out on the sides in his hand.

"Do what you need with her. Xanatos has no further use for them," Nil said.

"You backstabbing snake! Was this his plan all along?" Yzma asked.

"Oh please. KRONOS is so much bigger than just one person. That is what you were told when you signed up for this. The Chimera drug has been safely delivered to Xanatos. As far as we're concerned, that was the extent of your contribution to the plan. Now that that's taken care of, we have no further use for you and Dr. Drakken," Nil said.

"What even is it that Xanatos is offering you? How can you help someone like him?" Aqua yelled.

"Help? I don't care for that word. I'm a puppet on strings. The only time I feel free, is when I harbor the hatred I have for one boy. The person who made my life hell. I will kill Sora, and once I am done with him, I will kill Xanatos for bringing me back from dead," Nil said.

"From the dead?" Aqua asked. "And Sora? I don't understand."

"And that's fine, because your journey ends here. Raise your Keyblade and fight, Master Aqua." Aqua could feel him spitting her name through his mask. It was full of a pure contempt and disregard for life, something she had never thought even possible from a human being. Or was he human? He had said he had come back from the dead, though who knew if he was really telling the truth?

Aqua raised her Keyblade up and started casting magic left and right. Her magic felt more powerful somehow, though she wasn't about to complain because at least she wasn't weak like before.

Nil seem uninterested in playing the long-range game and made an attempt to close in. Five times he attacked, forcing her to meet his attack with her Keyblade and deflect it. Though she was holding her own, she could say she was making any ground either, but neither was he. Still, something seemed off about the whole thing. Not even how powerful her magic was but Nil himself. It was almost like… he was trying not to hit her?

Aqua backflipped away and finally managed to land a hit on Nil with Firaja, blasting him away. When he stood back up she could see that a part of his mask had been damaged, revealing a blue left eye. Like his voice, his eye was devoid of all emotion except for an unsettling hatred.

His entire body seemed to seize up for a moment before he threw his swords right at Aqua. Aqua guarded with her Keyblade and let the sword bounce off. She was about to run towards him but stopped when Nil dashed and landed in front of her. He picked up the sword and swung upwards. Aqua swung down and interlocked her Keyblade between one of the sword's branches. Aqua had expected to pull her Keyblade away and continue fighting.

Instead, her Keyblade shattered into pieces.

Aqua stood there with a perplexed look on her face. It was like it had been her heart itself that had shattered into tiny fragments. She didn't know what her own heart looked like but she imagined it resembled fragile glass right now.

"What?" she mouthed. She held out her hand to summon Stormfall but nothing formed in her hand. After a few more desperate tries, she looked up at Nil. "Wh-what did you do?"

"Hmph, I guess it really does work on Keyblades. Xanatos will be disappointed to hear that," Nil said with his eye closed.

"But why?"

"Xanatos gets bored of things going his way too easily, so he says. I can't understand that personally. Why save for tomorrow what you can do today?"

"Stop it. Stop it! Stop ignoring me. How? Why?" Aqua cried.

"Outside of its intended purpose, the Seven Branched Sword serves no practical purpose when it comes to battle. The tip is chipped after all and the branches themselves aren't quite as sturdy as they look. Still, to think that it would still work after all these years buried away. Seven hits… it takes seven hits to destroy just about anything. The question was whether this applied to such a legendary weapon as the Keyblade. Guess, this answers that question."

Aqua collapsed on her knees and stared at the ground. She wished she could just crawl into bed and stay there for the rest of the day.

"Well, I suppose I should give this back to Xanatos. As I said before, do what you want with the hag," Nil said. He opened up a corridor of darkness and was about to step in when Aqua grabbed his left shoe with both hands. He looked sideways at her and, were the Sun not blocking his face, she imagined she would see a pitiful eye staring back at her. "Just give up. You're no one now. Go find a new life." With that, he shook his way out of Aqua's grasp and walked through the portal, closing it behind him.

Aqua rolled onto her back and stared motionlessly at the sky. Was it unfair that she wanted the world to stop, if not just for one moment, to have sympathy for her? She felt unmotivated. Joyless. The feeling of her magic feeling even more powerful didn't matter to her now. She hadn't lost, but she hadn't won either.

She turned her neck to see Yzma still lying there, the binding spell still in effect. That was right. No matter how much she wanted to cry in a corner, there was still a job to do. She couldn't disappoint Neuge who was counting on her for something so important. She couldn't disappoint her friends. She refused to believe Nil's words that taking Drakken and Yzma were pointless. Even if it wasn't as big of a deal as they previously had though, something would change. Something had to change.

Aqua picked herself up and trudged forward until she reached Yzma's side.

"Wait! You want revenge too, yes? Er, perhaps we can make a deal? I can help-"

"Stop talking," Aqua said. She pulled Yzma up by the nape of her collar and pushed her forward. "Start walking."

* * *

 ** _Front of School, Kuzco Academy_**

Aqua tugged Yzma along with her by her arm until they reached the stairs leading up to the school, where Aqua spotted Kim and Ron standing alongside a bound up Drakken and Shego. Also with them were Kuzco, Malina and Kronk.

Drakken gritted his teeth before yelling out loud, "Kim Possible, you think you're all that, but you're no-"

"Oh, shut up for crying out loud," Yzma cut him off as Aqua sat her next to them.

"Thank you! Seriously, he has no sense of timing with these things," Shego said.

Kim looked away from them and frowned upon seeing Aqua. "Are you okay? You look tired."

"A lot of things happened in a very short amount of time. I'll tell you later, okay?" Aqua told her, putting on a brave face for the time being. What they needed now certainly wasn't her tears. "For now, we should get these guys on board the plane. We need to get back to Middleton immediately."

"Okay…" Kim bit her lower lip before looking over to Malina. "Then I guess we should be heading off."

"Wait, what about our plan, Aqua? I thought you wanted to spend a day at the school?" Malina asked.

"Sorry, I don't really feel like it at the moment. Maybe… once this is over?" Aqua suggested. She obviously wasn't fooling anyone, given the low amount of energy in her voice.

"Sure thing. I'm not exactly sure what happened here, but I know you'll get through. You're a pretty cool gal, Aqua. It takes style to jump out of a window like that," Malina replied.

"Yep, and you're always welcome to try some of Kronk's famous home cooking. It's, to put it simply, heavenly," Kronk advertised.

Aqua gave a weak chuckle. "I will, thanks, Kronk. Oh, and Kuzco? Don't go touching other women's private parts only to compliment those private parts. Very unbefitting of an emperor-in-waiting now, isn't it?"

"You what?!" Malina raised her voice, turning to Kuzco angrily.

"Hey! Don't put it like that. It was an accident. An ac-ci-dent," Kuzco enunciated.

"Oh, it was? I admit, my memory's a bit foggy right now," Aqua said. She nodded at Ron and Kim and lifted Yzma back up while Ron handled Drakken and Kim with Shego. "Anyway, we'll see you guys again, okay?"

"Don't be strangers!" Malina yelled, waving as Aqua and the others walked off into the setting sun.

* * *

 **A/N: Big chapter here to tide you over until next time. Speaking of which, I wonder how Sora, Luna and the others are doing? I suppose it's about time we returned to them, huh? As for Aqua's fate, you'll just have to wait on how exactly she'll deal with losing her Keyblade. But feel free to follow or favorite the story and leave a review in the meantime. Thanks and see you all later!**


	35. Coming of the Storm

**A/N: With E3 just around the corner, sure hoping for that KH3 trailer... yep. And in a surprise new twist we find out that it's not 'Now In Development' but we might actually get a 'release date announcement coming this winter' instead.**

* * *

Chapter 34

Coming of the Storm

General Mari Seren was notably enthusiastic as she headed into Irva Torvald's room. Without any regard for ranks, she propped herself onto Irva's table and smiled at him.

"You have something to report something?" Irva asked, glancing up at her briefly before returning to his book.

"It might even brighten up your day. Have you been having a bad day, commander?" Seren asked.

"Why must you ask in such a condescending tone? I'm not a child," Irva replied.

"Really? That's a shame. I wouldn't have minded being your wet nurse."

Irva coughed and spluttered something fierce. Eventually he recovered and grimaced. "General Seren, I didn't hire you to make such obscene comments. If you have a report, out with it!"

"Aw, you're no fun," Seren purred. She hopped off the table and folded her arms. "Very well. A few of our scouts picked up on an unusual vessel near a town called Gravity Falls. Upon closer inspection, items no doubt relating to Sora were found on board. With your approval, I hope to take a force of elite with me at once to dispose of him."

"Very well. Then I approve of your actions, general," Irva said.

"Thank you, commander. I won't let you down," Seren said with a smile. "There's one other matter. While our scouts were searching, they spotted Janus in the town… eating donuts at a diner."

"Well, for his sake they better have been damn good donuts," Irva said, eliciting a chuckle from Seren. "I don't doubt that Janus will inevitably become a problem to the order we're building, but he seems to move from place to place without even leaving a trace. By the time this news got back to you, chances are he was probably already gone. He's not like my brother, who fell by Sora's hand due to his own hubris."

"Well, I think you're giving Janus too much credit. He would destroy society, and from the outside no less. We want to reform it, from the inside. No one could ever follow a man like that," Seren said. A knocking on the door interrupted their conversation. June Caster soon walked in and saluted.

"Am I intruding on something?" she asked.

"No. We just finished actually," Seren replied. She nodded at Irva before taking her leave. June waited for the door to close before talking again.

"We just received word of an explosion at the missile defence system on the eastern wall."

"Another one? Didn't we catch the culprit?" Irva asked.

June shook her head. "He seems to have been a copycat. Imitating the actions of the real culprits under the influence of Mother. This time the sabotage was undeniably caused by the insurgents. That's not even the worst part. People—citizens, who happened to be near the wall were caught in the blast. Thirteen injured, three dead, one who was even a child of about six years old."

Irva clenched his fist tightly and looked up at June from the corner of his eyes. "What a cowardly act."

"Now they have blood on their hands. They can't claim to be completely spotless anymore," June said. She began drawing patterns on his desk with her finger. "The thing is, though I would not wish to take advantage of someone's death, we can't let this opportunity slip through our hands either. You need to make a statement. Come out against this and condemn them. This is our chance to gain the public's support. Their trust."

"You wish to emotionally manipulate the public into liking us?" Irva summarized.

"That's no different than any other form of media. Tons of things rely on tragedy to motivate and encourage action. Look. Even if you don't want to see it as such, the people at least need to know that you're going to stand by them. They need to know that we value their safety and those who once sought to protect them do not," June said.

Irva cracked his knuckles for a bit before reaching for his pen. "I'll get to work on it then."

"Want me to help?"

"Ah, no. Wouldn't want to take you away from your duties. I'll call you when I'm ready," Irva said. June nodded and left, leaving Irva to himself and the piece of paper he had been writing on. He picked up the paper and stared at it for a moment before scrunching it up and tossing it into the garbage. He rested his forehead on the table and ran his hands through his hair. "That damn dream again."

* * *

 ** _On Board The Sheva_**

 ** _At Sea_**

Sora and Luna lay on the deck of Balthier's ship listening to the gentle sound of waves lapping against the boat. It was therapeutic in its own way, offering the peace and comfort that being on land could not. As soon as they reached land, they were constantly moving, constantly on their feet. It was these quieter moments that Sora wished there were more of.

"Have you ever wondered what it would be like if this war had never happened?" Luna broke the silence. "I mean… don't laugh at this, okay? It's kind of silly."

"Oh, that's okay. I've come to expect silly things from you by now," Sora said.

"Okay, Sora. You know, most people would usually say something like, 'oh, you're not silly', or 'I promise I won't laugh'. Something like that."

"Then it's a good thing I'm not most people," Sora replied. "But I obviously do like that quality in you so go right ahead."

"Well, I just thought we could, you know, get a house somewhere in Alexander and live together. Then I could work at Aunt Kit's bakery, save up some money and buy a cute little kitten for us," Luna said.

"Ah, so going from wanting to get away from your home to I want to go on adventures forever to I want to settle down back in Alexander? I see…"

"Well, not right now! I just mean that kind of future would be a lot clearer than it is now. And I guess I just miss Aunt Kit is all. She's pretty much the only thing I miss about that place, I guess. I don't know, would the Destiny Islands be better? Closer to Lara?"

"What? Ho ho ho, you wish. I'm not sure I'd be comfortable knowing that my mom was just down the road and could come over at any time. How about Radiant Garden? I mean, it sounds like the most obvious place but we've spent a lot of time there and it's where our friends are," Sora said. He turned his head to the right to look at Luna. "But I'm guessing that's not what you want?"

"Well, yes… and no. Agh, I'm a complex girl. I don't know what I want," Luna said.

"Well, that was obvious," Sora replied.

"Okay, enough with the cheek. It's not about where we live together, it's that we live together at all. After we're done adventuring of course," Luna said.

"I mean, I know I said you were silly but I don't think that's a silly thing to wish for at all. At least you didn't say something like 'I wish I could be a princess and have my boyfriend give me really expensive gifts', you know? Then there'd be problems," Sora said.

"I do NOT sound like that. And I'm not exactly the materialistic type. I prefer the simple things in life, not that I don't desire things from time to time," Luna said.

"You don't have to justify it to me. I know," Sora said. "And I'd think you want somewhere you could have a clear view of the stars. We'd just sit out at night sometimes and talk about stuff. Anything really, doesn't have to be important. We have to bring them back first of course. When I look at the sky now it seems aimless… empty. Sailors used to use stars as a waypoint to discover new lands or even find their way home. That was what my dad told me once. For you, it was what kicked off your adventure in the first place. I wouldn't have met you if it hadn't been for them."

"Aw, this sounds like the start of one of those clip show episodes when you're about to enter the season finale of a long-running TV show. My, that was really specific, wasn't it?" Luna asked.

Sora laughed. "Well, this isn't the end for us. Even after this, we'll keep going. Don't know where it'll be but that's where the fun is. So many possibilities… Artemis, are you listening in?"

"What would give you that idea?"

"Oh, hell no! You don't get to do that. That's creepy!" Sora yelled, bouncing up from his spot. Artemis appeared in front of them with her face resting on her left palm. Sora was surprised how quickly he had become used to Artemis after first meeting her in Gravity Falls a week ago. She had introduced herself as a goddess who had descended from Olympus and placed herself in Luna's Keyblade, except that wasn't exactly the truth. Artemis wasn't sure why she was connected to Luna's Keyblade, but she had brought up something interesting:

" _I can tether myself to magical energy, which the Keyblade just so happens to be made of," she had told them not too long after they had been introduced. When asked by Balthier if the tethering could happen accidently, she told them that she was pretty sure that it had to be known. She had also told them that she had only done it once before with another Keyblade._

" _It belonged to a girl… now that I think about it, something about you reminds me of her, Luna," Artemis said._

" _How do I remind you of her?" Luna asked slowly._

" _You kind of look alike. Her name was Moira."_

 _The name had caused quite a shock among Sora and especially Luna, who stumbled and stammered her way to her next question. "Moira? Her name was… Moira and s-she looked like me?"_

" _Well… looks like you still have a way to go before you catch up to me at least," Sora jested, hoping to make light of the heavy atmosphere. Luna didn't laugh and Sora immediately felt like an idiot._

" _Well, not exactly like you. I don't know. Maybe they were an ancestor of yours? Genes are funny things after all. It happens," Artemis tried to comfort her. Again, Luna wasn't having any of it, very much distant from the conversation that followed afterward._

Without even knowing or meeting her, Moira had somehow found a way into their lives bringing a new mystery to the forefront. It was scary how a girl who had lived centuries ago could have so much sway over them today. If she had been a Keyblade Wielder, had she managed to survive the final battle with the other Keyblade Wielders who were transported here? Somehow, Sora doubted that. If the Moira they were thinking of was the same as the one Kohle had named Moira's Crescent after, then there would have been no reason to name his group after her if she were alive. Then again, he didn't know the entire story. The only one who might know was Kohle and that was frustrating to recognize.

"So how are you two lovebirds getting along?" Artemis asked, rocking her head from side to side.

"Well since you already know, what's the point of telling you?" Sora asked.

Artemis' face screwed up as if she were about to cry. "WAAAH! Luna, your boyfriend's being mean."

"You're a goddess and you're throwing a temper tantrum? Now I truly have seen it all," Sora replied.

"Let's not ruin a nice moment, both of you. Happy Happy Joy Joy!" Luna cheered. The doors of the cabin opened up and Aya walked out with a grin on her face. Even with having to ultimately say goodbye to Caleb, she had shown strength that Sora considered even now to be unfathomable to him. Caleb may have forgotten his memories of them and using the Keyblade but Aya had spent the rest of their week becoming friends with him all over again. The conversations flowed naturally just as they had before the memory wipe, but every time Aya asked if he remembered anything, Caleb would make a guilty look on his face and apologize. If there had been anyone who had to act under the pretence of Luna's proclaimed 'Happy Happy Joy Joy', it was Aya.

"I see someone's in a happy mood," Aya greeted, taking a seat by Luna. "Man, I'm so jealous. I wish I could talk to my Keyblade. I mean, I know her true name—Mhaya, and I do feel a connection with her, but I can't physically see her like you can with Artemis."

"Still got one on me then. I can't get anything out of mine," Sora said. He frowned and asked, "So you know the truth about Keyblades?"

"Truth? What truth about Keyblades?" Aya asked. Sora nodded to himself and then proceeded to tell her everything they had found out about the origin of the Keyblade from the book that Mirage had written.

"No… that can't be. So Mhaya was an actual person? And her spirit or will, whatever you want to call it, is trapped inside my Keyblade?" Aya asked.

"I believe some among the gods were originally against intervening in this war for that purpose. You humans tend to be the instruments of your own demise in most cases, and this war is no exception. Not my words by the way, the words of my brother Ares. But I love humanity and I take the bad with the good. You are not alone, I promise you that. You have our support," Artemis said.

"Thank you, Artemis," Luna said with a beaming smile.

"So we're relying on a magical compass to take us to this Moira's Crescent?" Aya asked, changing topics.

"That's the plan. And you still want to find the Lunarians to warn them, right?" Sora asked.

Aya nodded. "I'll stick with the plan me and Caleb had in mind before everything went sour. It's important that there's a balance so that one faction doesn't hold too much power."

"I could argue that none of them should be holding any power in the first place but I understand not give them a blank check," Sora said.

"You guys were really planning on taking on all of them by yourselves? Horus, the Lunarians, Cephadalus and Oberian?" Aya asked.

"If it came to that, yeah," Sora replied. "Not to mention KRONOS and potentially Moira's Crescent, though I think I can convince them."

Aya sighed and let out a whistle. "Wow. You guys sure are brave."

Luna shook her head. "Being brave has nothing to do with it. It's as foolish as foolish comes and I'm scared about what lies in store but running away from it won't help. Sometimes you just have to dive right in and see how far you can go."

"It's better to try and fail than to have never tried at all. It's a good philosophy to live by," Aya said. "An even better philosophy is that you really need to listen to your stomach and grab a bite, which is what I'm going to do right now. Wanna join me?"

"Sure thing. I could sure fill my stomach right about now," Luna said, getting up. "You coming, Sora?"

"I'll join you guys in a few. I'd rather make sure my thoughts are left out here than continue in there," Sora decided after a second's pause.

"Take all the time you need," Luna said. She and Sora exchanged smiles and then Luna disappeared into the cabin alongside Aya. Artemis' physical form disappeared and became a tiny ball of light that flew back into Luna.

Sora turned back to the sea and stared out into the distance. As much as he wanted to find out the truth, he simply couldn't bring himself to go back _there_. Not until now anyway. It was as Luna had said— they couldn't run away.

He pulled out the key that allowed him to access the Perpetual Divergence and walked over to the cabin door. Placing it in the keyhole, he turned the key to the right, then back to the left and opened the door.

* * *

Sora walked through the pitch blackness, his path lighted by the ethereal light beneath him that acted as his road. Reaching the open space, he stopped for a moment and watched. In front of him was Yeul, looking up and mouthing silent words to the collapsed Kingdom Hearts. Whatever it was she was doing sure did look important, but it was also kind of creepy, talking to an inanimate object in the sky like that.

"Yeul, something up?" Sora alerted her to his presence. Yeul spun around, a little too quickly and seemed not to recognize him for a moment, but only just a moment as she smiled soon after.

"It's been seven days since we last met," Yeul told him.

"A month for me," Sora said. "I'm a terrible person, aren't I?"

"Why would you even say such a thing?" Yeul asked.

"The Gummi Ship that we were travelling in was destroyed. It was what I was using to talk to you. I don't even think until recently that I could use the cabin door of my friend's ship I'm on. I don't know how you don't feel lonely here. I really don't," Sora said.

"Well, maybe next time you can send a book my way from the outside maybe? And we could even spend some time reading it together… if that's not too much trouble," Yeul suggested with a hopeful look. Sora looked at her, his smile getting wider until he could finally stand it no more and burst out laughing.

" _AHAHAHAHAHA!_ Oh, man… sorry, I really didn't expect you to say that. That's cute."

"What do you mean cute?"

"It's cute, that's- that's all I said. I mean, I can't say I'm much of a reader but I was trying for a while until the war happened so, I guess it wouldn't hurt to start again. The next town I get to, I'll buy a few books," Sora said. "But just know if it comes to down to having to choose between a potion and book, I'll take the potion."

"That goes without saying," Yeul said with a chuckle.

Sora nodded and tried to think of a smoother way to transition into more serious talk, but when that proved difficult, he gave up and decided to go for it.

"So I heard something last week. It's related to Horus' symbol. The eye?"

"What about it?" Yeul asked.

"It's not just Horus' symbol. I don't know if they just thought it was a cool thing and decided to take it as their own but it was originally used to symbolize Kingdom Hearts. He also mentioned the words 'The Naked Truth'. Do those words mean anything to you?" Sora asked.

"Naked truth? I've never heard the words associated with Kingdom Hearts before. But naked might mean that it wants you to take your clothes off."

Sora raised a brow at Yeul. "Ah, no. No, I- I really don't think so."

"Sora, it was a joke," Yeul pointed out.

"Oh," was Sora's reply. The actual idea of Yeul cracking jokes was a lost cause on him. It was hard to imagine given what he knew her to be like.

"Additionally, naked could also mean being expressively open. So coupled with truth, it's a truth that has been bared to all," Yeul said.

"Maybe it's implying that once Kingdom Hearts returns to the Realm of Light, it will reveal some kind of truth?" Sora proposed. "You can't ask it and find out?"

"I told you, unless Kingdom Hearts feels it's something I need to know, I'm mostly kept in the dark as well," Yeul said.

"Yeah. Sorry," Sora capitulated. He had wanted to challenge Yeul even further. He had wanted to ask if she didn't think it was funny that she was made to follow orders without understanding their purpose. The only thing stopping him was Kingdom Hearts hanging right above them. For all he knew, it was listening in on their conversation and Sora didn't want to give it the wrong impression. "I need to know one more thing. You can still see into the future, right?"

"Why do you ask?" Yeul asked.

Sora closed his eyes and tried to force himself to get the words out, but they wouldn't come. A warm hand on his face forced him to open his eyes and he looked back into her green ones.

"I… need to know if I'm going to die in this war," Sora eventually said.

"Is that really a question you want answered?" Yeul asked. "Even if I told you your future, how would that be of any benefit to you?"

"I don't know. I… I'd do something. There has to be something I can do to avoid that fate. I promised Luna we'd see this to the end and then after we'd find a new life. I want to see Riku again. I want to see Kairi. I can't die yet. I'm not ready," Sora croaked.

"And you never will be, even if I told you. Sora? Sora, look at me," Yeul said calmly. Sora raised his head and inhaled deeply. "Have you ever heard of a self-fulfilling prophecy? It tends to happen when a person knows of their fate and tries to avoid or alter it somehow, except it is through that intervention that the fate comes about. That's why I can't help you. Because if you tried something in hopes of averting disaster, that may be the very thing that brings it about. In the end, it really is best just to do nothing."

"But you can't guarantee that doing nothing will prevent it either, can you?" Sora asked.

"No. I can't," Yeul answered sadly. Sora let out a pained smile and nodded to himself. She was probably right, but Sora didn't want to admit it. He couldn't stand to be left in the dark until the time came. If it ever came. Yeul may have already known but she wasn't telling and Sora wasn't going to do anything to force it out of her.

"I understand. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up," Sora said.

"You shouldn't suppress things. It's natural to be curious but I don't want you to obsess over something like that. I do want you to think of our future though. If you really do intend to see me at yours and Luna's side, if you intend to see Riku and Kairi again, then you need to keep fighting. Sora, I believe in you," Yeul said. Sora's pained smile faded and a sheepish grin took its place.

"I should get back. I am pretty hungry right now," he said.

"I'll be eagerly awaiting your next visit then," Yeul said with her usual nervous smile.

* * *

Sora stepped out onto The Sheva's deck once more and looked up to see darkened clouds approaching in the distance. The water that had once been a most amazing and unusual blue now seemed dull and unwelcoming. If Sora had learned anything so far it was that the sea could be an ally and even friend one moment and then their enemy the next.

He was about to turn his attention away from the seas when something small caught his eye. He walked over to the railing and observed for a moment, the smile that had been on his face since leaving Yeul slowly disappearing as the Gummi Ships came into view. He counted seven of them heading straight for the ship.

"No. No no no no, you have got to be kidding," Sora murmured. He turned quickly and ran for the cabin door, barging through to see Luna, Aya, Balthier, Fran and Kupopo sitting by the table.

"You okay?" Aya asked.

"No, I don't think so. A bunch of Gummi Ships are heading our way," Sora said.

"And they couldn't even wait for us to finish eating. How rude," Balthier replied, getting up and walking over. Sora backed out of the doorway and walked back over to the railing with Balthier. They were shortly joined by the others.

"Maybe they're friends, kupo?" Kupopo asked in a tiny voice. "Or- or maybe they just happened to be passing by."

"Are we really going to wait to find out?" Sora replied.

"But how did they find us so easily if it isn't a coincidence?" Luna asked.

"Don't know, but I'm not planning on letting this be the end of us," Sora said, summoning his Oblivion and Oathkeeper in both hands.

"Hmm, three Keyblade wielders, a marksman and a hunter against a fleet of ships…" Balthier summarized. "This will get messy incredibly quickly."

"Well, I can't say I'm not used to getting dragged into messes, especially when they're yours, Balthier," Fran said.

Balthier let out a soft chuckle. "The honor is mine, Fran."

Sora rubbed his left temple with his index finger as he continued to stare at the warships. "Okay. Luna and Aya, you think you can protect us from oncoming attacks?"

"I don't really think thinking is going to help here so I'll just say yes," Luna said uneasily. She looked over to Aya who appeared incredibly skittish by the situation. Luna took hold of her hand and gave it a squeeze. "It's okay. You're safe with us."

Aya smiled and nodded at her before looking at Sora. "What about you guys?"

"We'll be the offensive, naturally," Balthier said as he prepared his flintlock. "And though I don't expect to take down one of those things in a single shot, I wouldn't underestimate me and especially not Fran either."

"Here they come," Luna warned. One of the Gummi Ships reached them before the rest and the door lowered to reveal a woman with mid-length silver hair looking at them with a smug smile. She tilted her captain hat downward and grinned.

"So you're the boy that killed the commander's brother? You don't look like much, but I'm no fool. I'm sure you're just fool of surprises," she said.

"And who would you be?" Balthier asked.

"General Mari Seren of the Caladbolg division of Horus, and I'm here to punish naughty children who ask too many questions," Seren said.

"Ms Seren?"

Aya stepped forward, looking up at her. Seren's grin turned into a miserable scowl.

"Well if it isn't Aya Miyabe. How long has it been since we last met? Seven hundred years or so?" she asked.

"Ah, I'm sensing a past between you two? Mind filling us in?" Luna asked.

"She was my homeroom teacher at the academy," Aya explained. "Then during the war she appealed to me to join her division but-"

"But you ran away. Like a coward. I was sorely disappointed. Still am, except I didn't realize just how long these feelings had lingered inside me until seeing you again. The intensity is the same. Utterly disappointed, and we can add joining an enemy of Horus to the list. Twice."

"I'm sorry I disappointed you, Ms. Seren. I really am. But for the first time in a while, I've found friends who support me. I don't feel pressured or left behind just because others are doing something that I can't. I ran away because I didn't feel I was strong enough to fight under Irva Torvald. I let other people—my peers, my friends—do the dirty work for me during many of my missions while I stood there like a coward because I couldn't bear the thought of killing others. But I won't run away anymore. These guys are what motivate me to become stronger, something I could never have found while still with Horus," Aya said.

A pained expression overtook Seren's face and she closed her eyes before smiling again. "And you used to be such an amazing student. A shame. Hmph, that's fine. I'll be sending your motivation to the bottom of the ocean anyway. You might as well join them."

"How convenient for you that she was such an amazing student until she became self-aware," Balthier said angrily. "It speaks quite a soliloquy about you and your practices. Unfortunately for you, you took it upon yourself to mess with the wrong ship."

"We'll see about that," Seren muttered. She disappeared from their view and the door of the Gummi Ship closed soon after. It sped off and rejoined the rest of the fleet who began advancing on The Sheva soon after.

The first of the Gummi Ships zoomed forward, firing off Fira-G artillery that hit the water as it headed towards their boat. Luna ran forward to the front of the boat and raised a shield with her Keyblade. The salvo of Fira-G projectiles smacked against the shield with such intensity that they threw Luna off her feet. Aya moved forward and caught her quickly, looking up to see the Gummi Ship whooshing past them and up into the sky.

Luna placed a hand on Aya's shoulder and steadied herself. "This is going to be a massacre, isn't it?"

"Yeah. For them," Sora said.

"Ooh, aren't you confident," Luna said. She looked back at the Gummi Ships and aimed her Keyblade at the second ship coming by, this time blowing the projectiles away with multiple casts of Aeroga.

A barrage of fire magic shot forth from Sora's Keyblade aimed at the Gummi Ship. Some flew past the targets while others hit the ship dead on, knocking it off balance only slightly. Aya moved quickly to the back while deflecting shots aimed for the ship itself and Balthier followed after, pausing every few second to shoot at the ships flying above them.

"Sora, light my arrows on fire," Fran asked of the brunette.

"Huh? Oh, yeah." Sora turned quick on his heel and did as he was told, shooting the magic at the arrows just before they hit the Gummi Ship approaching them. There was a small explosion followed by the glass in the cockpit shattering. The next thing they knew, the ship was spiralling out of control and hit the sea bed not too far from them. Sora's mouth hung open and he laughed. "Oh. OH! Did WE do that?!"

"Don't get complacent," Fran told him.

"Yes, ma'am," Sora mumbled. He looked up at the sky to see the rain and wind picking up. It was something that was going to inevitably work to their disadvantage, especially for Fran's arrows.

"Don't worry about me. I haven't been hunting since I was a child just to let a little wind stop me," Fran said, as if sensing Sora's worries for her. Sora nodded before returning to dual cast magic with both his Keyblades. There was a certain rhythm and timing to each spell that increased their effectiveness although Sora couldn't say he was a master at this timing. He had only trained with Shantotto for a week and hadn't really done much practicing afterward. The biggest problem was keeping his aim steady after knockbacks from magic, not that his aim was particularly great in the storm anyway.

From aboard her Gummi Ship, General Seren steadied herself as her ship was battered by the violent storm. Around her, various ships were engaging with The Sheva which was putting up more of a resistance than she had expected. This should have been a total annihilation but instead she could only watch painfully as her fleet failed to do any damage. She growled and stamped over to the communication device, flicking the switch on and yelling into it. "What are you stupid fools doing? How could one itsy-bitsy target give you so much trouble? Rip them to shreds right now or I'll hand you all over to Grendel to let him play with you!"

Her voice echoed out of the ship itself causing Sora to let out a satisfied grin. "I think we're making her mad."

"Ooh, I guess that means we're doing good, then? Let's keep at it," Luna replied smugly. She looked away as Aya reappeared next to them.

"Balthier's trying to keep the ship steady. We just have to finish them off before they finish us," Aya said, casting some of her magic at the Gummi Ships. "They say the best defence is a great offence after all."

"Can't have a great offence if you're dead. Now less talking and more hitting," Fran pointed out. She twisted slightly and aimed above her just as a Gummi Ship passed over them before firing off an arrow. The arrow hit the engine on the back of the Gummi Ship, blowing it up and sending it into the tumultuous ocean waves.

Just then, a great white light flashed across the sky. Sora's eyes were drawn upwards for a while before looking back at his Keyblade. It was worth a try in his mind even though something told him it was also an incredibly stupid idea. He transformed both Oblivion and Oathkeeper back into one Kingdom Key and raised it skyward in hopes that salvation might strike in the next few seconds.

"Sora, what are you… AGH!"

Luna was cut short as a lightning bolt came down and struck his Keyblade, lighting it up. Sora looked back to the Gummi Ships and shot a beam of light from the tip. Powered up by the electricity generated, the usual beam now sped forward like a crackling bullet. One, two, three Gummi Ships… the bullet went straight through all of them, leaving devastation in its wake.

From her own ship that was not among those targeted, Seren smiled despite the look of disbelief on her face. "Holy shi-"

Her head turned as an explosion went off right near The Sheva. From the ground, the cause had been one of the Gummi Ships heading straight into the water nearby. The resulting explosion rocked The Sheva and Luna who had been by the railing was thrown back into and over it.

"Luna," Sora said, although the name was drowned out by the sound of booming thunder. He ran forward and jumped straight into the water without a moment's thought. Water violently pushed against him in all directions but his goal was in clear sight. He forced his entire body to keep fighting against the waves and reached out to put Luna's arm around him. "Lun- Luna! Are you… okay?"

"Yeah… what do we do?" Luna asked.

"Hey!"

The both of them turned, barely able to make out the figure calling to them through the cruel waves.

"Aya, just keep going! Can't turn the ship around. You'll be in danger," Sora yelled as loud as he could.

"What about you?" the taller figure being Fran asked, moving towards the railing to get a clear view of them.

Sora looked around quickly until his eyes settles on a small shape in the distance that looked like land. "There's an island over that way, I think. We'll meet up there!"

"Okay. Stay safe!" Aya yelled. As if on cue, shots from the enemy hit the water near Sora and Luna. Sora dived underwater and ensured Luna followed suit before heading in the direction of the island. A few seconds later, they emerged from underneath and kept swimming from there.

"Sora… I can't…" Luna tried to say as they continued swimming. Sora tried his best to look upwards as he heard the sounds of a Gummi Ship gaining on them. Conversely, he could feel his strength waning and the waves working haphazardly to prevent him from moving.

"Don't worry. I'll make sure you won't suffer long!" he could hear Seren's voice from above, followed by a streak of Comet-G missiles going off.

"Reflect!" Luna yelled, turning around to stretch out her hand. The missiles exploded upon hitting the shield but the impact was enough to blow Sora and Luna away. The last thing he saw before blacking out was a second explosion just a few second after.

* * *

Sora groaned and clawed his fingers back, bringing muddy sand back with them. This seemed to pique his curiosity and he opened his eyes. Other than the sensation of feeling sand in his fingers, he noticed more importantly that his entire body was in pain. He gritted his teeth and rolled onto his back to stare up at the sky, though he eventually had to look away when the onslaught of heavy wind and rain struck out at him.

"Ugh… how's that song go again? _Had a bad day_? Definitely need that blue sky holiday right about now," Sora groaned. He tried to sit up but his back was far more interested in ignoring his orders. "Can't stay here, idiot. Move."

Somehow, Sora managed to stand up. The first thing he saw was a big and beautiful full moon looking back at him. It was some semblance of calm in his chaotic predicament.

"LUNA! LUNA!" Sora called over and over. He heard nothing in response except pouring rain and the wind's howl. He took a few steps when he caught sight of a few figures just a few ways off from where he was.

"They're around here somewhere. Keep searching until you've found them," Mari Seren said.

One of her cohorts seemed less than enthusiastic about the search. "But they couldn't have survived an explosion like that-"

"Do you see any bodies? No? Then shut up and search!" Seren yelled back. She turned around and there was no doubt in Sora's mind that she had seen him, but he wouldn't wait to confirm that theory either. Sora took off into a sprint, trying his best to ignore the pain shooting through his body. Up ahead were trees that seemed to extend many miles. If there were ever a chance he could make it out of this mess alive, then it would be in there.


	36. Welcome to the Jungle

Chapter 35

Welcome to the Jungle

The evening air was warm and dry as Irva Torvald took the podium in front of hundreds of people in Radiant Garden's town square. Gradually, their gossiping faded until there was dead silence. Irva looked over to June who returned his stare with a nod. Then, he began to speak.

"Yesterday evening at 7 PM, an explosive device went off near the eastern wall, injuring as many as thirteen. Taking the lives of three. I've already spoken to the families of the victims and will continue to work with them over the next few days to ensure the proper compensation is put in place. That said, compensation is no true substitute for the loss or harm of a loved one. This was nothing more than an act of cowardice, and today I ask you to question one thing: where does your loyalty lie? Many of you may indeed hate us, but at what cost? Enough to see others take over at the expense of the pain and suffering of your fellow citizens?" Irva moved around the podium and stepped forward. "Your old rulers have abandoned you, running with their tails behind their legs. Now, they seek to reclaim the power they once had by any means necessary. What they fail to understand by their actions is that even if they gain power, they will not have done so without their hands clean. One cannot hope to rule properly if he does not have the mandate and respect to do so.

"Now, I'm not one to miss out on the irony of my own words, and though I did wish to secure as peaceful a transition of power as possible, quite a few of you were injured in the process, for which I apologize. My father, the previous leader of Horus, was a man who pursued his vision of a united world through fear and aggression. Despite being tutored under him, I hated his ways. When I eventually took over, I vowed to do things differently, and of course some of the higher ups close to my father were against that. The first days of my tenure were those rife of frustration and revolt, but not once did I abandon my convictions, for though I hated my father, the one thing I admired about him was his tenacity. That is what I promise you today as we embark on a new journey together. I believe in everything this place stands for and I will fight for it until my last breath. I refuse to take a step forward if you are not walking with me. If a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, then I shall work day in and day out to strengthen that link until even the weakest is strong. In our Radiant Garden, no one will be left behind."

By the time he was finished, Irva's nostrils were flaring and his gaze was an arrow that could pierce the human heart. The part about his father had not been part of the original script and he certainly hadn't told anyone in Horus except June about his enmity for the man who had raised him. He had simply been speaking the thoughts and feelings he had kept deep inside for a while.

The town square burst into applause, the crowd seeming to warm to Irva. He let out a relieved sigh and then walked back to the podium.

June joined him and gave him a pat on the back. "You were so good! I think people have seen a leader who'll stand by them in you. And less support for the Restoration Committee means they'll be easier to wipe out."

"We're only just getting started," Irva said. "I won't just surpass my father's dream. I'll crush it while it's limping on the ground."

* * *

Sora peered around the tree, watching as one of Seren's team walked past him. He looked down to his left arm. Blood was travelling down his arm, not due to getting engaged in any fights but from a simple careless mistake of coming into contact with a prickly bramble bush. Though it stung, he tried his best to ignore it and instead moved to tear a piece of his sleeve off. He quickly wrapped it around the source of the bleeding and leaned his head against the tree for a moment.

After making sure no one else was nearby, Sora approached the man quickly, his movement through the undergrowth drowned out by rain. Once behind him, Sora swung hard at his head with the Kingdom Key, knocking him right out.

"He's over here!"

Sora shot a sideways glance at the direction he had come from to see another Horus member heading his way. They aimed their Keyblade and cast fire, but Sora raised his own to guard. The lackey continued firing off magic in hopes of catching Sora while the brunette ducked and disappeared behind trees. Eventually, Sora leaned around the current tree he was behind and cast thunder, sending an arc of lightning at the lackey.

"This is getting so old it's practically Triassic," Sora said annoyed. The part of the bark next to him was suddenly chipped off as more magic whizzed past. Anger and frustration was beginning to boil within Sora. He closed his eyes for but a moment when Yeul's voice entered his head:

" _If you really do intend to see me at yours and Luna's side, if you intend to see Riku and Kairi again, then you need to keep fighting. Sora, I believe in you."_

Sora nodded and stepped out of cover. Gripping the Kingdom Key tightly in both hands, he charged forward, deflecting each magic projectile that came his way. If he wanted these people to leave him and his friends alone, then he had to communicate that to them in a language that they understood. That was the thought on his mind anyway.

He closed the distance between him and his pursuer. The boy, probably only slightly older than Sora, swung outward but Sora ducked underneath and struck diagonally upwards. The boy stumbled backwards for a moment before letting out one last gasp and collapsing. He had chosen his side, and Sora had chosen his own. He wouldn't die here. He couldn't, not when he had so much to live for.

"Seren, where are you? I'm done hiding! I'll fight you fair and square!" Sora yelled out. He was sure she couldn't hear him, but it made him feel powerful and right now that was what he needed most.

He did a quick double check before advancing farther in. At this point, he was starting to get an idea where he was, and it didn't look good. He was in a jungle, a place so insurmountable and intangible that Sora didn't even know where to begin looking for Luna, let alone Balthier, Fran and Aya.

 _I suppose if Fran were here, she'd tell me to find a place to rest for the night. Can't do much in this storm,_ Sora thought. He just hoped they were all safe for now.

Sora soon made an important discovery—a river that separated one side of the jungle from the other. Rather than crossing to the other side, Sora decided to follow the river downstream from his side instead. This soon proved to be a sound guess when, upon reaching a small waterfall, he came across a wide rocky landscape with a cave all the way at the back.

"Yes," Sora whispered. He made his way down the slope to lower ground and crossed through the earthy terrain to reach the cave. Once inside he propped himself down and curled up into a ball. "I didn't even eat. _Foooood_. I need food."

Wanting something, anything, to distract him from that thought no matter how annoying it may be, Sora summoned Yuna, Rikku and Paine.

"About damn time! Can we get a least some fresh air every once in a while?" Rikku ranted loudly.

"Rikku, please turn it down a notch, will you? I probably should have let you out a bit more but it's not as easy as you think. Summoning is basically just another form of magic. It would be physically tasking on me if I did it all the time," Sora murmured.

"Well, we saw everything was going on from inside anyway. Let me see your arm," Yuna said. Sora lent it to her without much hesitation and watched curiously as she placed her hands on the bandaged wound. A warm green glow emanated between his arm and her hands causing a pleasant sensation that made Sora slightly lightheaded.

"Thank you. And I'm sorry," Sora said.

"It's okay. You can make up for it at a later date," Paine said.

"I wasn't talking about summoning you guys. I meant about getting you human bodies. That's the entire reason you've been travelling with us. And I still haven't found a way to give you that," Sora said. "And with this war, I don't know if I'll be able to for a while. I can understand if you want to leave."

"Oh, that? Please. That's all in the past," Rikku said. "Besides, we already figured out a way to become human."

"You have? How? When?" Sora asked.

"Heh, heh, heh. It was just a little idea we had when listening to your conversation with Luna back on the Gummi Ship," Rikku said.

"Well, it was technically all Paine's idea but we chipped in. It was before we arrived at Belle and the prince's castle, remember?" Yuna asked.

"Err, you'll have to remind me," Sora said. The green light soon faded and Sora removed the bandage to see only a light purplish bruise on his arm.

"We're going to find the Enchantress who cursed the prince and ask her to change us into a human," Paine said.

"Wow. That… I never thought of that. That's actually a good idea," Sora remarked.

"Isn't it? I originally suggested kidnapping her but Paine and Yuna argued that it probably wouldn't earn them any favors with her," Rikku said.

"And I'm thinking you were right to listen to them," Sora said with a smile.

"But I'm sure it won't be easy to look for her. She is an Enchantress after all," Rikku pointed out.

"Right, and considering she cursed the prince, it's hard to trust her," Sora said. "I'll help you look for her when the time comes. Not only because I want to help you guys become human but because I want to hear her side of story."

"I don't think I've ever said this, but you're a pretty good guy, you know that? I wish everyone else in the world was like you," Yuna said, lying on the floor next to him.

Sora smiled and closed his eyes. "Not even I would want something like that."

Sora's eyes opened as small beams of light crept into the cave. More pressing however was the wolf right in front of him simply watching as Sora looked back at him. Sora froze in place, unsure of what to do. He wanted to scream and run for it, but it probably would only cause the wolf to lash out in fear. Of course, he wasn't necessarily comfortable with the odds of survival just from staying still either.

The wolf pup looked away and let out a cry. Moments later, a bigger wolf entered the cave. Sora pressed his palms against the cave, slowly inching upwards until he was standing.

"Who are you?" the wolf asked with a female voice. Even after visiting somewhere like the Pride Lands or communicating with mice at Baker Street, a talking wolf still came as somewhat of a surprise to him. It was probably because he had been more concerned with finding his friends than expecting to meet anyone else.

"Err… I'm Sora. I'm sorry if I was intruding on your home, I didn't mean anything by it. There was a storm and I needed somewhere to stay," Sora explained.

"And now you shall leave. Man has no place here," the wolf said. "Come along Mochi."

"It's okay, Raksha. He's with me."

That voice… Sora looked towards the entrance to see a figure shadowed by the sunlight outside. As she moved closer to them, Sora's hardened face seemed to melt at the sight of her.

"Xion…" Sora whispered as the girl came into view. It had taken a moment for him to even recognize her. She had grown out her hair to shoulder-length with the ends flicking and curving off in different directions. A thick fringe of hair hung straight down the middle of her forehead, almost reaching eye level. She also wore a sleeveless jacket over a forest green and violet dress with beige hot pants underneath.

"Xion, are you sure about this? He isn't one of them?" Raksha asked. Xion shook her head and smiled at Raksha before turning back to Sora.

"What are you doing here?" Xion asked. There was something about the question, whether it was the serious expression on Xion's face or maybe even that she didn't seem to realize the irony of her question, that made Sora laugh out loud.

"What am I doing here? What am I- are you even hearing yourself right now? Where have you been? You disappeared on us. We were worried sick about you and your first thought is to ask me what _I'm_ doing here?" Sora asked.

"You're taking this too personally," Xion replied.

"Well excuse me for caring," Sora said. "I suppose I expected more of an 'I'm so glad you're here' instead of a 'why are you here'."

"You're right. That was pretty insensitive of me. Come outside with me and we'll talk. Oh, and Sora, this is Raksha, the wolf mother of the pack. Raksha, this is Sora, my friend," Xion introduced. Raksha only nodded and looked at the wolf pup she had called Mochi before leading him away from Xion and Sora.

"So she says man doesn't belong here yet you two seem to be on a first-name basis. What's up with that?" Sora asked.

"I saved them from invaders. Keyblade wielders," Xion said, exiting the cave. Sora followed post-haste, emerging from darkness to a world of light.

Without the rain, Sora could see a lush environment with a diverse line-up of plant life, ranging from trees as tall as skyscrapers to overgrown thickets. Sounds that were not there before now burst into life. Parakeets, monkeys, frogs and other species made their presence known to Sora—that make no mistake, the jungle was their dominion and he was merely a visitor passing by, estranged from their way of life.

But Sora was not among the entire jungle. He was among wolves. As he and Xion walked past them, Sora observed pups bouncing excited and playing around with one another while the adult wolves seemed more cautious around Sora and seemed to steer clear as he and Xion closed the distance between them. He also noticed a Chocobo lying next to a boulder and pointed it out to Xion.

"That's my friend, Boco. He's how I've been getting around. How we met is a long story," Xion told him. She didn't seem particularly interested in diving into the details, leaving them in silence for the small duration of their walk.

Xion soon stopped at the small lake from which water from the waterfall arrived at and turned to him. "Two separate factions, tribes, whatever you want to call it, have been battling it out here for a while now. They've set up camps not too far from here and it's been causing problems, not just for the wolves who need to hunt but for all the wildlife in the jungle. When I first came here, I found Raksha on the brink of death and at the mercy of one of those Keyblade wielders. I killed him and did my best to nurse her back to health. The only thing she was guilty of doing was protecting her pups and they still lashed out at her for it. It made me realize something. There are people out there who are suffering simply from being virtuous. From trying to live their lives like they normally would. Tell me, Sora. What's so wrong in wanting to live a normal life?"

"Nothing," Sora answered. "But those people, the ones who are hurting others, they won't get away with it."

"I hope you aren't suggesting what I think you are. Karma doesn't exist, not in the fairy tale sense of the word anyway. There is no invisible meter on our lives that weighs up how mean we've been to each other and then dishes out an appropriate response just to balance things out. The world is unfair and cruel. It only took a war for us to realize that. If there are good people who genuinely try to help the world and are never recognized for it, then no one should expect that a person who hurts the world should always be punished for it."

"Well I'd expect that a person who helps the world would want to do it because he wants to help the world, not because he wants to be noticed," Sora replied.

"Everyone wants to be noticed, Sora. It's what validates our existence," Xion said. Sora didn't have a rebuttal for that. It just seemed strange to him that he was listening to a somehow wiser (though he may not agree with her) Xion and that one of their first conversations since reuniting was about philosophical concepts. If Xion was planning on making this as awkward a reunion as possible, she was succeeding.

"Well, forget all that for a second. Why did you disappear on us? Riku was worried about you. He couldn't even get any sleep over it," Sora said, trying his best to put on a smile. Xion didn't smile back, which caused his own to falter.

"I… can't use the Keyblade anymore," Xion said. "Ever since being locked up in Janus' prison."

Sora glanced over from Xion to the lake, watching as the ripples of water spread outward. "I'm sorry to hear that. But maybe there's a way to bring it back-"

"I don't think so. It's not something external that I'm looking for. Trust me, I've tried. It's in me. There's something… broken inside me and I don't know if it can ever be repaired," Xion said. "But going back to when I disappeared, I was in the forest nearby when I saw this strange figure. I decided to follow but I lost him. Then I saw something else—a swirling vortex of light, unlike anything I'd ever seen before. It was so beautiful, so otherworldly, and it called to me. I walked into its warmth and when I came back out, I found myself at the beach, staring at the ocean and an amazing red bridge reaching out into the mist. And for reference, the bridge is called the San Fransokyo Bridge, also known as Golden Gate though I can't say it's made of gold nor does it have gold of any kind waiting for you on either side. The closest thing that might come to it is what it looks like at night. The lamp posts give off this nice warm glow on street level which does quite reach the towers of the bridge itself. They just disappear off into the night sky. You'd have to see it yourself, it's really beautiful.

"Anyway, I didn't have to wait long to find out what was waiting for me there. When I turned around, I came face to face with a man who I would come to realize possessed incredible intellect and strength. I've been training under his guidance until recently. They once called him the Silver Samurai."

"Silver Samurai? That sounds pretty amazing. Then if you trained under him, you must be-"

"A samurai. Keyblade wielders have their own code of conduct that they follow. I have mine," Xion said.

"Then that's not unlike the code Neuge follows. Bushidō, isn't it?" Sora asked.

Xion nodded. "It's not merely down to combat. Art, writing, philosophy… Master Harada taught me that all those arts can help build compassion. Understanding. Justice. I'll enact my own justice on those who prey upon the innocent, and eventually, given enough time, I'll inherit the mantle of the Silver Samurai. I left Master Harada a month ago, promising to return for more training. He suggested enlightenment by seeing the world was a good way to gain perspective on my own judgement, awareness and growth. And that's led me here."

"Huh. Now I have to wonder if this is the same guy Neuge met. I kind of want to meet him," Sora said.

"You should. Maybe you'll be able to find something in yourself with his help that you never could find alone," Xion said. She stood up again and walked over to the boulder with Boco nearby, kneeling down behind it to retrieve the katana.

"Isn't that sword a little big for a girl like you?" Sora asked, watching as she stroked Boco's beak with her other hand.

Xion smiled at him. A first since meeting him. "It's not the size that counts, but how you use it. Surely you've heard that one before."

"Touché," Sora conceded. He was about to say something else when it hit him like a ton of bricks. "Oh, right! I'm sorry, we need to go. We were fighting some of Horus' guys and a storm happened and Luna and I ended up separated from each other and our friends. I can't stay here. You're coming along, right?"

"To find Luna? Of course. Coming along in general? No," Xion said.

Sora looked on perplexed. "Xion… everyone else is waiting for you."

"Then they shouldn't. I don't hide behind my intentions. Being a samurai is about honor and there's no honor in revenge. I don't know whether this is true or not, but I'd like to think the vortex in the forest appeared because it understood my desires, and wanted to prep me so I could fulfil them. With these own two hands, I'll kill Janus," Xion said. "You know what I can't help wondering every time of think about him? What does he see behind those shades of his? Because I figure… that someone as sadistic and monstrous as him must see the world completely differently from the rest of us."

"You're just like Riku. Obsessed with revenge," Sora said calmly.

"You would be too if you had experienced even half the hell we had. I thought Kefka was bad. Janus is a monster in human guise. His time will come, but until then, we need to deal with the others, starting with the ones nearby here. How about we check the nearby camps for any sign of Luna? If she's not there then there's probably one other place she and your other friends could be," Xion said.

"Right. Let's get going then, shall we?" Sora proposed. Xion nodded and walked over to Raksha who was watching contently as the wolf pups ran around nearby.

"We're heading off, Raksha," Xion told her.

"Be careful out there," Raksha said. She looked over to Sora and asked, "You will keep her safe. Won't you?"

"Of course. I heard from Xion how she saved you. I'm so sorry about what happened but I hope you won't think that all of us are like that. Most of us are genuinely good people who are suffering from those guys as well. We'll get rid of them for you. I promise," Sora said.

"In the jungle, actions speak louder than words," Raksha said.

"What a coincidence! Outside the jungle, actions speak louder than words too," Sora replied with a smile.

"Unfortunately. You only need look at the destruction you bring in your wake to see that," Raksha said unamused.

"Fair point," Sora said, bobbing his head up and down.

"But maybe you really are different. You remind me of someone who once used to live among us. He was man cub who we found when he was but a babe. We decided to name him Mowgli, which means frog in the language of the jungle. He now lives among his own in a village not too far from here. Like him, I sense a fire burning bright within you," Raksha said.

"Sense, ma'am?" Sora asked.

"I suppose being around those with a similar sense of adventure and mischief tends to make it easier to notice these things. More importantly, a friend of Xion's is a friend of ours as well," Raksha said. Sora flashed Raksha an appreciative smile before turning and giving a nod to Xion.

* * *

Sora crouched low behind a tree and leaned forward to get a closer look at the camp. There were six people in sight, some older while others appeared to be teenagers. There were also three tents set up around the camp. Assuming six was all they were, then that probably meant two for each tent.

"I can't stand another minute in this stupid jungle. It's so muggy," one of the two girls among the six whined.

"Just go shirtless then," another boy said, winking at her.

"You wish, you perv," the girl replied. "Seriously though, considering there's an assassin somewhere around here, I'm not exactly thrilled about staying here."

"There's one of them and eight of us. And as long as we stay here together they'd be a serious fool to try and take us," said another man. He took a swig from his flask and held it out for the girl to take.

"Eight? So two others are around here somewhere," Sora whispered.

Xion, who was right behind him, gave a soft chuckle. "They think they're safe. You know, there used to be more of them. And then I showed up in their lives."

"Well that isn't in the least bit terrifying," Sora replied sarcastically. "So… wait a second, what's the plan here?"

"You, actually. Sora, be a dear and act as a distraction for me, will you?" Xion asked.

Sora let out an exasperated sigh. "You owe me for this."

"Of course," Xion replied. Her face was an unreadable mask but Sora got the distinct impression that she was enjoying this.

"Okay. Well, I'll try to lure some of the way so you can take the others. You can still use magic?" Sora asked. Xion shook her head and he nodded in grim understanding. "Well, just try not to get yourself hurt."

"You worry about yourself. Now go," Xion said. Sora slipped away from their hiding place and sneaked his way around the perimeter of the camp. He placed his hand on his chest, concentrated, and summoned a Cera Terror Dream Eater. He pointed forward at the camp's barricade and the Cera Terror charged forward.

Its sharp horns pierced the encampment with ease, startling those who were there. Sora followed this by aiming his Keyblade at the tents and setting them on fire. Immediately, magic started flying in his direction. Sora deflected the projectiles quickly before ducking behind the remains of the barricade. He chuckled as he briefly caught sight of Cera Terror launching one of the grunts into the air. He recalled the Dream Eater back into his own heart and strode along to the left, casting large shards of Blizzaga that exploded around the field.

"Oh no you don't," Sora said, quickly pausing to blast away the girl from before who was running towards him with Aeroga.

Meanwhile, Xion ran right into the camp without anyone noticing and zig zagged forward before striking down her first victim. She never stayed in one place for too long, her feet acting like a spring that bounced excitedly as she began to dominate the camp. It was a Xion that Sora had never seen before.

Being picked off from both sides, the smaller group of Keyblade Wielders were forced into the defensive. Sora sniped with magic from afar while Xion moved in up close and personal, delivering heavy overhead strikes with her katana. She was careful to jump back and dodge however whenever someone attempt to retaliate. One of them aimed their Keyblade at her but she quickly pulled out a small shuriken from her pocket and threw it. The star-shaped projectile hit and lodged itself in the man's hand, causing him to scream in pain and drop his Keyblade. She walked forward and raised her sword while the man was tending to his hand and without hesitation, swung the blade down.

Soon enough, Sora and Xion found themselves standing alone among a pitying sight of eight bodies scattered around a camp. Sora aimed his Keyblade at the tents and quickly put the fires out with blasts of Waterga before walking over to Xion.

"You were really crazy out there! It's like you didn't fear a single thing. I'm not gonna lie, I'm kind of scared of you," Sora said.

"Well if it can make even you afraid, I'll take that as a win," Xion said. She looked down at the bodies and grimaced. "Err, okay… I'm going to have to check the bodies, just to make sure they have anything useful on them. You don't have to participate if you don't want to."

Sora appeared surprised by this before quickly shaking his head. "No. I'd feel bad if I just left it to you. Can you take the women? I don't feel right searching a dead woman's body."

"Of course," Xion said. The two immediately got to work checking each of the bodies that they had taken out. Sora gradually felt his progress slowing as he came face to face with the prospect of having to inspect a body and looked over to Xion. Her actions were complimented by methodology, not emotion. She spent a few second checking out one body before moving onto the next. Ashamed of his own pace, Sora went back to what he was doing and in no time at all, he soon rejoined Xion. She had covered most of the bodies while he had covered three, albeit slowly.

"Dog tags," Xion said, showing him the small oval shaped plaques. "For identifying the dead, of course. And under their names is the group they're affiliated with."

"Cephadalus," Sora read. "Haven't seen these guys until now. You said they were fighting against another faction, right? I wonder who?"

"Even if the grass is greener on the other side, it's still grass. Well, more like weeds actually," Xion said.

"How do you do this?" Sora muttered, looking around him.

"This? Usually first with a sword and then I-"

"No, not that. I mean _this_. All of this. How can you remain so composed when you do this? They're people, just like you, aren't they?" Sora asked.

"Maybe."

"Maybe?" Sora repeated.

"Maybe they're people with their own thoughts and emotions, their own past. Maybe they had family and friends. Maybe that one girl there liked collecting seashells and that one guy like Sea Salt Ice Cream. Is that what you want me to say? Sora, they could be all the things in the world and that still wouldn't stop me from carrying out what I need to do. You start sympathizing with your enemies and you're putting yourself and everyone you care about at risk. I know what you want to say. That it's cold, even machine-like of me to see things like that. It's fitting considering what I am."

"Don't say that. You're human," Sora reasoned.

"I was extracted from your heart and placed in an empty shell, just like the first time. Janus… he somehow knew that. I could feel him… stripping me down with his eyes…" Xion looked off for a moment before blinking and returning to reality. "Sorry. Anyway, I know it's not easy, but if you really want to protect the people you care for then sometimes you have to do the unthinkable, even if it means depriving someone of their humanity in your own mind."

It was a cruel thing to say, but she wasn't wrong. This was the conclusion he himself had come to just yesterday night. One that had guaranteed his survival. In the end it really was going to come down to an 'us against them' type of situation, which Sora was annoyed about, but more annoying to him would be his inability to protect those closest to him. Indeed, he had already proven that he was capable of throwing others under the bus just to save one girl he liked so this wasn't exactly anything new to him.

"We still have another camp to check out, right?" Sora asked instead.

Xion nodded. "This one's a bit farther. I kind of wish I had Boco with me but I guess you'll have to do. Alright, get down on your knees."

Sora's forehead wrinkled in confusion. "What?"

"Well, you don't expect me to ride you if you won't bend over," Xion said. Sora let out a continuous 'err' sound that caused Xion to laugh. "I'm just kidding. Is not working?"

"I don't even know what's happening right now so I'll just say yes," Sora croaked, grimacing as he did so. "Well, let's get going. I don't want Luna waiting on me any longer than she has to."

* * *

Luna woke up to find herself in some kind of ruins. Moss covered some of the walls, some of which were intact and other dilapidated. Looking up, she could see the rays of the sun pouring into the room, illuminating her in an otherwise shadowy room.

Luna stood up and took a few steps out of the light. Her attention was drawn to an orangutan sitting upon a throne chair at the end of the room. His eyes were closed but below him was…

"A piece of heart," Luna whispered, hypnotized by its pulsating orange glow. As she stepped forward, her look of wonder left her as she heard a whisper. Whether it was in her head or in the room, she didn't know, but it came all the same from someone very familiar to her.

" _I'm cold. I'm terrified…"_

"Mom?" Luna mouthed, the words barely escaping her lips.

" _I'm lonely… so lonely. It's my birthday today. And I'm twenty-one. The big two-one. I mean, that's when you do all the crazy stuff you couldn't do at twenty, right? Go clubbing, get drunk, or maybe even get really crazy and go skydiving. I'm kind of afraid of heights so I think I'll leave that one off the list. Still… what is age when my time has been stolen? I'm just… so tired and lonely all the time. Somebody help me… please help... put me out of my misery."_

"Mom! What do I do? How can I help?" Luna asked desperately. It didn't even strike her that what she was saying was weird, or even that her own voice could wake the orangutan in front of her.

"I don't think your momma's coming, sweetheart," the orangutan suddenly said.

Luna screamed and fell backwards and pointed at him. "Bad monkey! Bad!"

"I take offence to that! Do all primates look alike to you? Cause from where I'm standing, all yours kind looks the same," the orangutan said. "Still, I think you'll do good by my side."

"What do you mean 'by your side'?" Luna asked.

"My queen, of course. Oh, where are my manners. Allow me to introduce myself," the orangutan said before suddenly bursting out into song.

" _Now I'm the king of the swingers, hooo—_

 _King Louie, that's my name_

 _I've reached the top and had to stop_

 _It's really become a pain_

 _I wanted to be a man, my queen_

 _And stroll right into town_

 _But now I've had a change of heart_

 _This solution's just as sound!_

 _Oh, ooh-bee-doo_

 _I wanna wife like you-hu-hu_

 _She'll go on walks with me_

 _She'll talk with me, guess who?! That's you-ou-ou_

 _And you'll soon see-e-e_

 _What it's like to be with me-e-e_

 _Now put on that wedding dress_

 _You'll release the man in me-e-e_ "

"Wh-what are you even saying?" Luna asked, backing away slowly.

"I've read your literature. Or attempted anyway. From my understanding a man cub only becomes a man when he devotes himself to his wife. And so I shall devote myself to you in hopes of becoming a man," King Louie said.

"That's… really not how it works," Luna said, looking behind her. "And would you look at the time. I happen to be somewhere… like, anywhere but here, right now. It's a shame you'll have to cancel the wedding but maybe you'll find someone different. Auf Wiedersehen!" Luna waved and attempted to run, only to have her exit blocked off by other monkeys. Luna looked around for another way out, eventually turning around to see Louie right in front of her.

"The wedding goes on," he insisted.

Meanwhile, Mari Seren watched the scene from above the exposed hole in the room with a smile. Her eyes wandered over to King Louie's seat where the heart lay alone and her brows raised.

"That light… could it be?"

* * *

A/N: Always wanted to know how far you could take King Louie's obsession. At least here, it seems like he wants to go down the Bowser route. Also, I can't say Mowgli will be a part of this story. He's living in the village at this point. Anyway, be sure to follow for more and leave a review and I'll see you guys next time.


	37. The Madness of King Louie

**A/N: So with the new Planet of the Apes movie coming out soon, I've decided to dedicate this entire chapter to the primates featured in the Jungle Book. Okay, not really. Still, it was Going Ape for a decent portion of it. Anyway, the King Louie in this chapter is kind of a mix of the one in the animated movie and the live-action version. If you imagine the animated version with the voice of Christopher Walken, that might help.**

* * *

Chapter 36

The Madness of King Louie

Sora and Xion arrived at the second camp after a ten minute trek through the jungle. Settling down next to each other, the two watched and analyzed just like they had with the last camp. When Sora saw two girls, one with blue hair tied in a bun and the other, about as short as Luna, with shoulder-length pink hair, he held his hand out and placed it on Xion's hand.

"Wait. Wait a second…" Sora said.

"I'm waiting," Xion replied.

"I know these guys. They were in Port Royal until we kicked them out," Sora explained. "Their leader is the sister of those two over there. Hattie Byrne. They're all from Oberian. Oh boy. First I come across you and now them. This is getting way too coincidental for my liking."

"Kicked them out?" Xion asked.

"Uh, yeah. Don't attack just yet. I'm gonna try and see if I can talk to them. If things go sour, I'll signal for you to come in," Sora said.

"If things go sour you might be long dead before I can step in," Xion interjected.

"Not if you're quick about it," Sora said, ending it off by flashing a quick grin at her before stepping out of their hiding place.

He set foot inside the camp and called out to them. "Hey! Fancy meeting you here."

"You?!" The blue haired girl, Vera, asked in astonishment. The others in the camp turned their way and suddenly pulled at the Keyblades, keeping them trained on Sora. Only the pink haired sister, Sarah, seemed uninterested in the affair, glancing up only briefly before returning to her portable gaming device.

"Woah, now. That's not a very nice way to treat an old acquaintance, is it?" Sora asked.

"One who kicked us out of our home? Yes, I do think this is the appropriate response," Vera replied.

"The home that you took from my friend's dad? That wasn't your home to begin with. Still, looks like you honored your end of the bargain," Sora said, placing his hands on his hips.

"No thanks to you, now we wander this world like vagabonds. Hopping from one place to the next, always met with hostility resulting in us jumping to the next place. So on and so forth, the cycle continues," Vera said.

"Well, I guess you should've thought of that before stealing other people's homes became an option on the table."

"Oh, please. Stealing houses is so the Hattie Byrne of old." A Scottish accent somehow drifted into conversation. Everyone turned around to see Hattie emerging from the middle tent. "I'm a changed woman now."

"There's not exactly a reason for me to believe that," Sora said.

"And I knew you'd say that. See? There's a connection there! I knew it from the moment we first met," Hattie said.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Sora asked slowly.

"Sora, I think I love you."

There was a moment of silence that followed in which Sora thought deeply about his regret of ever stepping into this camp in the first place.

"Oh," he eventually said before he began stammering. "Well, I… I kind of… you know… look, I already have a girlfriend so I-"

"That makes it even more exciting," Hattie said. "I've decided that me and my crew are going to do one last raid together. The biggest raid of them all. Once that's done, I'll have enough saved up where I can retire, buy a big house, preferably with a swimming pool in the back, and live out the rest of my days in peace and quiet."

"You've thought this through. What do you mean by raid?" Sora asked.

"Well, back at the academy we used to conduct raids as a class, taking out Heartless and the sort. At some point, that extended to going after treasure. Caverns, ships, small islands… they all helped us grow as a team, and the team eventually became more than just a team. Now, we're gonna end it all with the biggest treasure out there. There's a planet out there-"

"Okay, you can stop. I think I know where this is going," Sora said. It was as if the fates themselves were aligning things to make his path a smoother one, but considering his journey so far, he was more suspecting that he was willing to just take it as it was. "You want to go to Treasure Planet?"

"AH! He's so understanding, isn't he, Vera?" Hattie squealed.

"Don't talk to me," Vera dismissed her sister's giddiness by turning away.

"One moment," Sora said. He turned around and waved for Xion to come out. Cautiously she made her way over to him, though Sora could still see her hands wrapped around her sword's hilt. "This is Xion. She's with me."

"Oh, your girlfriend?" Hattie asked.

"No, I found her here too. Anyway, what are you guys doing here in the middle of the jungle?" Sora asked.

"A part of the journey to find Treasure Planet. Rumor has it that a long time ago, an ancient civilization came to our world and they crashed in this very jungle. They also never left for whatever reason. I don't personally care about the details, but if that ship is still around here then that's our ticket right there to a world full of loot for the taking. A pirate's ultimate dream," Hattie explained. "By the by, you said that you found your friend here? So then you were the one hunting my men?"

"You were disturbing the jungle's peace. I did what I felt was necessary," Xion replied.

"We did have some problems with old 'friends'-"

"You don't have to worry about them anymore. Sora and I took care of them. As long as you behave like a good little girl, you won't have to follow them," Xion said stoically.

Hattie chuckled at this. "I like her. Sora, if it doesn't work out between us. I don't mind taking her instead. I'm not picky."

"By all means, go for it," Sora offered without hesitation.

"You're both on my hit list," an irritated Xion muttered.

"So, are you tagging along with us then?" Hattie asked. "A world paved up to your wellies in gold. Can't turn down an opportunity to see something like that now, can ye? Even if you aren't a greedy nugget like myself."

"I don't think that's a-"

"Can we have a moment?" Xion asked, not waiting for a response before dragging Sora away from the group. "You can't miss this opportunity. You have to take them up on their offer."

"Huh, why?" Sora asked.

"They are basically offering their services to you, right now. Having a crew of your own isn't necessarily a bad thing," Xion said.

"Says the lone wolf," Sora replied.

"Well, that's me. It's not you," Xion said.

"But she's annoying."

"But she can protect you, and if those wanted posters I'm seeing of you and Luna are any indication, you'll need all the help you can get. At least I can move in the shadows. You don't have that luxury," Xion said.

Sora looked over in the direction of Hattie before responding. "I guess you've got a point. Our ship being attacked was what led to Luna and me ending up here."

Walking back towards Hattie, he extended his hand. "I guess I'm a part of the crew now."

Hattie grinned and was about to shake his hand when Sora palm became a fist and a raised index finger.

"But no killing innocents, no taking others' property and you promise to start a clean slate after this whole treasure hunt thing blows over. If I so much catch word of you doing something you shouldn't be doing, you'll be the one I'm coming after next," Sora warned.

"You chasing after _me_? Now I'm tempted to keep doing naughty things. Very well, I guess we have a deal," Hattie said. The two shook hands and Sora looked back to Xion.

"Alright, you mentioned another place that Luna might be?" he asked.

Xion nodded. "Well, I know about it but not exactly where it is. A friend of Raksha's advised me not to go near there. Of course, if there's a reason for us to go there, especially an urgent one, he won't have any choice but to tell us."

"Cool beans. So where do we find this friend of Raksha's?" Sora asked.

* * *

As Sora, Xion and Hattie slowly traversed the wet marshes on their way to the village, they stopped to watch and admire as a parade of elephants crossed the marshes to get to the lake on the other side.

"You know their tusks? They're made of ivory. It was a pretty valuable commodity back in my time. There was a massive controversy regarding it, I remember, due to it resulting in the endangerment of the species. We weren't supposed to interfere with affairs that were outside the forces of darkness, though some guy managed to convince a group within our faction that the darkness had infected the man's heart, leading to such cruelty in the first place," Hattie said.

"What happened next?" Sora asked.

"The men involved in the Ivory trade were slayed. Every single one of them. Because the Oberian members who were involved went against the rules, they were punished. If there's one thing you need to know about our faction, it's that we were, maybe even still are, very conscious of our image. Leaky faucets must be fixed."

"You'll forgive me if I'm on the side of those who wanted to stop that ivory trade, though I wouldn't need such a flimsy excuse as they were infected by darkness to act," Xion said.

"Well I never said I agreed with the policy. They got rid of it soon after the war started anyway," Hattie said. The elephants soon passed, and the three of them continued on their way.

Eventually they arrived at the jungle's exit to see a small village just across the river. They weren't alone however, as two other animals sat nearby, watching the village from afar.

"AAAAH! THERE'S A BEAR!" Hattie screamed, ducking to hide behind Sora. "Please don't let it eat me."

"What's that ringing in my ears? Sounds like my grandmother… and I'm pretty sure she's dead," the bear said, spinning around to face them.

The panther followed his gaze and soon smiled. "Ah, Lady Xion, it's a pleasure to see you again."

"The pleasure is all mine, Bagheera," Xion said.

"Wait a sec… _Lady_ Xion? Lady? Really?" Sora asked.

"I love how that's the part you get stuck up on, but why not Lady Xion? I think it's pretty fantastic, thank you very much," Xion replied. "Who's your friend, Bagheera?"

"Ah, of course, this is-"

"Please, save the introductions for the professionals. How do you do? Baloo's the name," Baloo said.

Hattie eyed him suspiciously before looking away. "He already bugs me the wrong way."

"Well, that would probably be because I'm a bear, not a bug. Common mistake, but we learn," Baloo replied.

"Oh, look! And the wise arse of the day award goes too…"

"Yeah, this back and forth? It has to stop," Sora cut in, gesturing between the two of them. "Why are you all the way out here anyway? What if the villagers see you?"

"Oh please, we're too good for them to see us. We'll just blend in," Baloo said.

"You, blend in? You've got to be joking," Bagheera dismissed with a shake of his head.

"Come on, Baggy, it's me. Besides, seeing Mowgli grow is something I wouldn't miss out on for the world. Why, he's gonna grow up into a fine young man someday. The kid's even got himself a girlfriend now."

"You don't want to call him over when he's alone and say hello to him?" Hattie asked.

Baloo sighed. "Well, it's not that I don't want to, it's that-"

"The less he thinks of the jungle, the less likely he is to want to come back to it. It's for his own protection," Bagheera said.

"Well, if he's your friend, I doubt that will be enough to stop him from wanting to come back. It might actually do the opposite," Sora said.

"I think so too, but Baggy here seems to think otherwise," Baloo said.

"Let's not go through _that_ conversation again. You know we can't have another Shere Khan on our hands. The man-cub is back where he belongs—among man," Bagheera chided.

"Sora, Luna's waiting, I think," Xion reminded him in an attempt to cut the conversation short.

"Oh, we were wondering if you could help us get to the ruins. Our friend's missing and there's a chance she might be there," Sora said.

"And go anywhere near King Louie? I'll take my chances elsewhere at the moment. He's been off his rocker recently," Bagheera snapped.

"Aw, come on. I say we help 'em out. Besides, maybe he's done with scumbag routine," Baloo said. When Bagheera gave him a look, he shrugged. "What? It could happen."

"We're capable of handling ourselves if that's what you're worried about," Sora said. "And you don't even have to come all the way if you're scared. Just getting us near enough is good."

Bagheera dug at the dirt with his paws before looking back at them. "Well if you are going, you'd better make sure you're prepared. I have a good feeling that once you enter, it's going to be very difficult to leave."

"Well I won't leave without Luna. Danger or not, I'm jumping in," Sora said. He hoped wherever he was headed, he could also find Aya, Balthier, Fran and Kupopo, but he only knew that Luna had been with him before he had washed ashore.

"Then count me in. It's a bit of a trek though. Hope you're ready," Baloo said.

"Argh, I don't feel like walking in this heat. Maybe if Sora lets me ride on his back, I'll consider coming along," Hattie said, fanning her face.

"What is it with this obsession of wanting to ride on my back? First Xion, now you?" Sora asked.

"I mean, it looks like a pretty nice back," Hattie replied.

"That's the first I've ever heard that compliment, if it even is one," Sora muttered unenthusiastically.

"Well if the alternative is you complaining and whining along the way, I'd much rather you ride on either myself or Baloo," Bagheera said, though from his tone he didn't seem eager at all.

"Excellent choice. I choose… you!" Hattie exclaimed, pointing at the disheartened Bagheera.

"My sympathies," Baloo whispered, patting the groaning panther on the back and offering a wink.

* * *

 ** _Near the Ancient Ruins, The Great Jungle_**

" _I mean the bare necessities, that's why a bear can't rest at ease, with just the bare necessities of life_ ," Baloo, Hattie and Sora sang as they continued through the jungle to the ruins. Bagheera's head drooped in embarrassment while Xion bopped her head from side to side, matching the song's timing.

"Man, that was fun! You're alright, Baloo," Sora said with a grin.

"Am I ever not?" Baloo asked. "Ah, here we are. This will be fun."

Finally out of the main body of trees, they could see magnificent stone spires belonging to temples stretching for the sky. A portion of the ruins was caved in, Sora found as they attempted to cross a partly damaged stone bridge, though most of it was still intact and it didn't look to be coming down any time soon.

"Oh, yep. This brings back memories," Baloo chuckled once they reached the other side of the bridge.

"So… can anyone here talk monkey?" Hattie asked.

"You're listening to a panther and bear talk and you're wondering if we need someone to speak monkey?" Xion answered her question with one of her own.

"I'm just covering all our bases here," Hattie said. "That said, can't say I'm interested in talking to a coupla monkeys. Think I'm gonna see if my new ship is around here," Hattie said.

"You're leaving us now?" Sora asked bemused.

"My boys and gals are counting on me. Look, if I find it in time, I'll come as soon as I can," Hattie replied.

"And if you don't find anything?"

"Well, let's just hope you don't hold back, even against a bunch of monkeys," Hattie said before wandering off into the ruins.

"Is that girl serious?" Bagheera asked.

"Let's not worry about her right now. We better start looking for Luna," Xion said. Sora nodded and the four continued deeper into the ruins. Sora lifted an arm and let the tips of his fingers trail against the rough and bumpy surface of mossy stone bricks. He eventually let his hand drop upon seeing a massive tree shooting up into the sky and casting shade on the ruins. Its visible roots spread out in different directions like a spider's legs, running over ledges or coiling and weaving around the pillars supporting the old temple.

"Hold on. I think we should split up," Xion said, suddenly stopping in front of him.

"You too?"

"No, I don't mean it that way. I think you guys should go through the front. Suppose something goes wrong. If all of us are there we'll lose our element of surprise. I'm probably the most nimble of us and I can move quietly. I'll back you guys up in case something goes wrong," Xion said.

"Alright. I'll see you on the other side," Sora replied with a smile. Xion nodded before running off, jumping on broken columns, using them to get to higher ground. Sora, Baloo and Bagheera continued on low ground and it was not too long before they started to see squads of monkeys starting to crop up.

"Whatever you do, don't let them see you as a threat," Bagheera said through gritted teeth, his eyes shifting left and right cautiously. "No aggression, no sudden movements, no-"

"Luna!" Sora yelled, catching sight of her small frame on the other side of the open door.

"Yelling…" Bagheera trailed off annoyed as Sora ran into the room.

Meanwhile, at the far end of the room, Luna had a permanent frown on her face as she faced a dressed up King Louie. She herself had also reluctantly dressed for the occasion. She was wearing a beautiful chartreuse saree with gold patterns and sequins emblazoned on it, which the monkeys had apparently snagged on their excursions to a village nearby.

"Now, let's see here…" the monkey conducting their wedding muttered as he sifted through the pages of his small book. "Ah, here we are. Do you pledge to share your lives openly with one another, to honor and tenderly care for one another, cherish and encourage… blah blah blah… for the rest of your lives?"

"We do," Louie said.

"We don't," Luna countered with a grimace.

"Err… I don't think there's anything in this book about what happens if you say you don't, so I guess I'll just pretend you said yes and continue," the monkey priest said, eliciting a very audible groan from Luna. "Now if there are any reasons as to why these two cannot be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace… pfft, like anyone here's gonna do that."

"Maybe not where you're standing, but from where I am, I have plenty of reasons. I object!" Sora yelled, reaching the end of the room.

"Sora!" Luna cried, abandoning Louie's side. She flung her arms around him and Sora lifted her up and spun her on the spot, planting a light kiss on her forehead as he set her back on the ground.

"Aren't you looking fab," Sora said. "So this'll be your new outfit from now on, right?"

"Fighting in this? In your dreams," Luna said. She looked behind him to see Baloo and Bagheera approaching them. "Erm, Sora…"

"Huh?" Sora looked behind him and his mouth parted as if suddenly remembering that they had been with him. "Oh, right. This is Baloo and Bagheera. They've been helping me. Oh, and you wouldn't guess who I also found-"

"Woah, woah, woah, woah, woah! WO-O-O-AH! Hold up a minute. We was just havin' a wedding and you come busting in. If you wanted an invitation all you had to do was ask," Louie intervened.

Luna rolled her eyes and looked back to him. "What don't you get? I don't like you that way. Heck, I don't even know you in the first place! I'm sorry, but you can't just kidnap someone and expect them to marry you."

"I think you misunderstood. I'm not asking you to marry me. I'm telling you to," Louie said, snapping his fingers. His army of loyal primates closed in on the four of them.

"Um, your majesty, perhaps we can talk this out," Bagheera tried to reason with him.

"The only talking I want done is from the priest when he declares me and her husband and wife," Louie replied. "The wedding. Continues. You don't marry me, you can say bye-bye to your friends."

Luna looked at Sora and for a moment, Sora thought that she might concede. That was only a fleeting thought however, which passed the moment she gave a smug smile. Looking back at King Louie, Luna grabbed a piece of her saree and held it towards him.

"You hurt them, you can say bye-bye to this dress. I'll tear it," Luna warned. There were gasps around the room from the monkeys, their heads alternating from Luna to Louie and back again in anticipation.

"Can we do the ceremony without the dress?" Louie turned to ask the priest. The priest skimmed through the book in a hurried attempt to answer the king's question.

"Um, it says at the beginning that it is custom for both the bride and groom to be dressed in the appropriate attire, so… maybe?"

"I guess you don't really have a choice then," Luna said. She moved her other hand quickly as if she were about to rip the dress, causing King Louie to flinch. She grinned at this and backed up until she was at Sora's side. "I'm leaving. Also, I want the piece of heart you've been keeping."

"Piece of heart?" Sora asked. He looked over at King Louie, his eyes wandering for a moment before settling on the prize. The piece of Kingdom Hearts rested against the backrest of King Louie's throne. "Wait a second… Baloo, you said before that he wasn't always acting like a scumbag?"

"Well, he had his moments, but he was mostly alright up until a few months ago, yeah," Baloo said.

"A few months…" Sora repeated then turned to Luna. "Why is that whoever has one of these becomes really aggressive?"

"Hmm, I'd say it exacerbates certain traits of the person?" Luna theorized. Sora snapped his fingers and nodded. Luna continued, "Well, if that's really the case, we have to get that thing away from this place as soon as possible."

Louie looked back at the heart before returning to them with an irate glare. "If you know what's best for you, you'll walk away. You can forget the wedding. Just get out!"

"Not without the heart," Luna said.

King Louie's nostrils flared and he glanced from side to side. Eventually, he took off for his throne and was about to grab the heart when Xion bounced on his head, landing with both her feet on the throne's armrests. She picked up the heart and gave Sora and Luna a knowing smile and salute.

"Got it."

"Xion? No way! Is it my birthday?" Luna asked.

"I mean you were almost married to a monkey so… pretty weird birthday if that's the case," Sora said.

"Good to see you again, Luna," Xion said.

The fuming king of the primates however was not yet ready to give up. "GET THEM! THEY DON'T LEAVE THIS ROOM."

The monkeys started to howl and cry across the length of the room. Before Xion could react, she was suddenly jumped by a group of them nearby, causing her to drop the heart and fall off the chair.

Sora summoned the Kingdom Key and batted the monkeys pouncing at him on his way to Xion. Sora illuminated his Keyblade and dispersed the light coming from it. The monkeys were on Xion recoiled upon seeing the light and ran away, allowing him to help her up.

"You okay?" Sora asked.

"Let that be a lesson. Don't get cocky," Xion groaned, rubbing the back of her head. She looked to the ground and dropped her hand. "The heart!"

Sora followed her gaze to where the heart had dropped, only to find that it was gone. He looked up in time to see King Louie snagging Luna by the waist and taking off with her in one arm and the heart in the other.

"Sora! Xion!" Luna screamed as she was forcefully taken from the room.

"Cover me," Sora told Xion. She nodded and he took off in a sprint. Baloo, who had been flinging off the monkeys that had been trying to take him down, saw them out of the corner of his eye and looked to Bagheera.

Bagheera nodded and joined up with Sora. "On me. We'll catch them faster."

Sora hopped onto Bagheera and aimed his Keyblade at the front door that the monkeys were currently struggling to close. Sora fired off a Firaga, blowing open the door and scattering the monkeys. Bagheera jumped through the rubble and continued on. They were now outside once again, closing in on King Louie and Luna due to Bagheera's powerful kick.

"Bandar-log up ahead!" Bagheera warned. Sora looked up to see monkeys jumping from the higher levels of the destroyed temple ruins to block their way.

"Don't you guys have anything better to do?" Sora yelled. He pointed his Keyblade at them and this time cast Gravity. This generated a forcefield that sucked in the monkeys. Bagheera ran to the side of the forcefield and continued towards the bridge, while the monkeys, weighed down by the effects of the gravitational force, were slowed down and unable to catch up.

"Haha, a straight road! Now we've got you, you- oh, you're kidding me!" Sora let out a frustrated laugh, watching as King Louie jumped off the side of the bridge instead. Bagheera stopped near where Louie had jumped off, allowing Sora a clear view of Louie using vines to get through the forest.

Bagheera shook his head in annoyance. "At this rate, we'll never catch him!"

For Sora, it was almost instinctual, like some part of him had been missing this. He jumped off Bagheera and took a few steps back until he was at the opposite side of the bridge. Then, he ran forward and jumped. Sora soared through the air, and for a moment he thought he might not make it. When his hands found themselves wrapped around the soft stem, Sora let out a nervous life and swung forward to the next one, letting go and grabbing onto the next vine.

"WOOOHOOO! YEAH BABY!" Sora yelled. If any of his friends were to see him now, they probably would have all thought that he had completely lost it. After reaching the highest possible altitude he could manage with the current vine, Sora let go and propelled himself forward to the next vine using Aeroga.

"Hey, quit monkeying around and let Luna go!" Sora yelled, grabbing one vine after the next.

"IT'S ORAGNUTAN!" King Louie yelled back at him.

"Oh, because I care about minute differences right now," Sora whispered coldly. Though try as he might, he could not find a good opportunity to stop the king of the apes in his tracks. Not one that could also cause harm to Luna.

Instead, he focused on gaining ground as quickly as possible, hoping for an opening to present itself sooner rather than later. The farther he got from the ruins however, the more he began to worry. He didn't want to be separated from Xion again, or Bagheera and Baloo.

He had to take the risk. He let go off the vine with his left hand and summoned the Keyblade. Not his dominant hand but he didn't have much time to think.

"Lady Luck, don't fail me now," Sora murmured as he waited for the moment when he and Louie would match heights.

 _Just a little more… Now!_

Sora fired off the Blizzard projectile. Something inside him sunk as he watched it pass over King Louie's head. He was too late. Just as he was about to look away in frustration, the sharp edges of the shard cut through the vine instead, causing King Louie to lose his support and fall. Sora's heart pounded hard in his chest as if it were trying to burst free. He also felt slightly disoriented from the possibility that he had messed up and had just gotten Luna killed.

Fortunately, King Louie managed to grab onto another vine up ahead, though at the expense of using the arm which was holding onto the piece of heart. Due to his last second desperate attempt at survival, the heart slipped from his arms and fell to the forest floor below them. Sora held out his Keyblade and attempted to catch the heart with a plasma hand, but it just managed to miss seizing the heart. He rolled his eyes but soon focused back on King Louie. He could get the heart later but right now, letting Louie escape with Luna was the more harrowing prospect for him.

As more and more trees began to make the path harder for Sora to navigate, he found himself casting wind magic frequently to propel him to the opposite side of the tree bark. Louie grabbed a coconut from a nearby tree and turned to throw it at Sora. Sora batted the oncoming projectile away and laughed.

"Yeah, just try that again. I dare you- oh crap." Sora's smile dropped from his face as he came face to face with wood. He hit the tree bark and fell to the ground. With a heavy groan, Sora rolled on his back for a bit. "Urgh, don't get cocky, she said…"

Meanwhile, King Louie howled with laughter at Sora's failure, failing to realize himself that he was swinging right into a tree. When he turned, it was too late. He slammed right into it, letting Luna go in the process. Luna fell, snapping a few weak branches on her way to the forest floor.

"You okay there?" Sora yelled out, getting up on his feet.

"Just dropping in is all," Luna responded, slowly lifting her right hand up to the sky before letting it fall.

"I'm gonna need a nice warm bath after all this," Sora said. He offered his hand to Luna and helped her up.

"Yeah, and a nice change of clothes wouldn't be bad either," Luna agreed.

A snap of a twig nearby alerted them to a third presence. Sora and Luna summoned their Keyblades and kept it trained in the direction of the sound. Louie emerged from behind a tree and scratched his head and looked around with uncertainty before settling on Sora and Luna's weapons.

"Woah, woah, woah, woah, woah! Hold up, what's the big idea here? What am I even doin' here? I honestly can't even remember. Ooh, my poor head," King Louie said.

"Think he's faking it?" Sora asked.

"Faking what, kid? This pain? Man, my back's got splinters and I am pretty sure the splinters got splinters," Louie said. He backed up against the tree bark and began scratching himself up against it. " _Awwwww yeeeeahhh_ , that's the stuff."

"Too much information," Luna said before turning to Sora. "Yeah, I don't think he's faking it. I mean, we know everyone else who has been near those heart pieces has acted like this so I guess the effects are wearing off. Ford seemed to be the same way."

"These things are dangerous. Good thing we only have three more after this one," Sora said.

"Sora, if this is just a tiny piece of Kingdom Hearts, and it's able to do this much harm to those near it, then what happens if Kingdom Hearts as a whole appears in the realm of light?" Luna asked.

"Then you're saying we shouldn't collect the heart pieces?" Sora asked.

"No, they're still a problem. I'm just really worried considering how we've seen those who were near one act, I guess," Luna replied, rubbing her arm.

"Well, maybe it's just because the pieces aren't actually connected to Kingdom Hearts right now. They're lost from their parent and are scared, which might affect others around it… okay, that's a weird analogy to think about-"

"No, I agree. They're like children. It's kind of cute when you think of it way," Luna said with a giggle.

"Look, all I know is that I trust Yeul. We have to put an end to this war," Sora said. If Sora had dug a little deeper with his answer, the question of whether he trusted Kingdom Hearts itself however would have remained more open. "Okay, let's… huh?"

"Something wrong?" Luna asked, watching as Sora twisted and turned in different directions.

"My Keyblade's not picking up the heart. That's strange… it's usually done it before," Sora said.

Luna looked down at her Keyblade. "Artemis?"

The apparition of the goddess appeared in front of them and shook her head. "I can't. I did sense it before but I lost its signature some time ago," Artemis said. "My guess is that it probably isn't here anymore."

"What? How does that even make sense? Things don't just disappear like that," Sora said.

"Hey, no use getting angry at me over it. I don't have a physical form so I couldn't have retrieved it. What's gone is gone," Artemis said.

Sora gave a sympathetic smile. "No, don't get me wrong, I'm not blaming you. I'm just… the only other thing I can come up with is that someone must have taken it. But who?"

* * *

 ** _Irva's Room, Radiant Garden_**

Irva leaned on one side of the chair, his cheek resting against the proximal phalanxes of his hand. His eyes were situated on the glowing heart in front of him as well as the woman who had given it to him.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Mari Seren asked. "All the things in this world that we cherish and hold dear, all of it, cast shadows when in the presence of this. We've fought over a light we couldn't even see or touch for so long, and here it is, right in front of us."

"A piece of the light," Irva whispered.

"I knew it from the moment I saw it. It seemed so extraordinary in what was ordinary. Sora and his clown brigade never saw it coming. I swiped it right under their noses while they were chasing a bunch of monkeys, and I do mean actual monkeys," Seren said. "And who knows how many more of these are out there? If we tail the fools we might even find more."

"Mmhm," Irva hummed uninterestedly.

Seren gave him a silly smile and asked, "Something else on your mind which is more important than…?"

"I'm not sure. As much as I want to be thrilled at the opportunities that this may present, something inside me tells me that this is all meaningless." Irva looked away from the heart to Seren. "What do you dream about at night?"

Seren frowned. "Well that just killed a mood. And I was about to bust out the whisky. I don't know. It's stupid really. I just have dreams about… dying."

Irva's fist tightened and he massaged his knuckle with his thumb. "How?"

"Does it matter? It's just a dream. Look, it's not really something I want to talk about. Let's just leave it at that, okay?" Seren muttered with an annoyed look on her face. She pointed at the heart. "What do you want to do with it?"

Irva glanced at it briefly before standing up. "We need to figure out a way to use it. Bring it with you to Alexander. Also, take the scientist with you. Perhaps we can finally put him to good use."

"As you command, Lord Irva." Seren bowed and took the heart before leaving the room.

Irva pressed his fingers into his desk hard and stared blankly at the space in between his thumbs. "What are you doing, Kingdom Hearts?"

* * *

 **A/N:** **Now you must be wondering, what, if anything, has Hattie found within the ruins? Good question. Find out next time! Also, w** **ithin the next few chapters we'll visit a world that I've been waiting to see for a while in Kingdom Hearts (Treasure Planet, which, as its name suggests is actually not part of the world Sora and co. are in). Until then, R &R and I'll see you in the near future.**


	38. Bound for Treasure Planet

**A/N: So I've started writing the chapters for Riku and Kairi's stories for this which means I'm going a lot slower on Sora's story with those and Through Smoke and Flames combined. So if Paved With Gold chapters get uploaded on a slower basis, it's not necessarily a bad thing. It will be worth it in the long run since I'll have a good batch of chapters to release after Sora's story is done.**

* * *

Chapter 37

Bound for Treasure Planet

"You know, I can't help but think that I should have gone for the heart. Now that I think about it, King Louie wouldn't have hurt you, especially when he wanted to make you his wife. If there's someone else looking for the heart pieces, I just handed one to them," Sora said as they walked through the dense greenery on their way back to the temple. Behind them, King Louie was in the process of eating a handful of bananas from a tree they had found along the way. Though it had been interesting to witness his method of collecting the bananas (which involved ramming his shoulder right into the tree), Sora was more guilt-ridden over what he felt had been his fault.

"Don't beat yourself up over it, Sora. If I had been in your place, I would've done the same thing. Besides, you did what you thought was right with the short time you had to act. You couldn't be sure that he wouldn't have hurt me and it's not like you had any reason to think that the heart wouldn't still be there. If there's anyone to blame, it's the person who took it, and we will get it back," Luna vowed. "Honestly, right now I'm more concerned about finding Kupopo and the others."

"Artemis, can't you use your powers to detect them or something?" Sora asked, placing his hands behind his head.

"What am I, a satellite? Even if I had some corporeal form to assist you, I refuse to help others who can't help themselves," Artemis' voice echoed in the air. Initially, hearing her without seeing her had sent shivers down his spine but he had forced himself to get used to it. She tended not to get involved much anyway unless directly confronted.

"Hello, you're a goddess. I don't think asking if you could find them is an automatic assumption that I thought you were a satellite," Sora said. He was expecting to hear back from Artemis when they suddenly found themselves surrounded by a group of Wraith. "Now of all times?"

"Err, friends of yours?" King Louie asked, looking around with a nervous smile.

"Yeah, they were at my high school graduation actually. I heard the punch was excellent. Come on, do we even look like we're acquaintances?" Sora snapped at him before looking back at the Wraith.

They were the strangest of the Wraith that had Sora had seen so far. They drifted forward rather than walked, wearing torn red robes and their faces decomposed. Much like the ravens and key-wielding monsters they had faced so far, something about them was very perturbing. He couldn't begin to understand how these creatures were the result of botched experiments to make Keyblades. Even the thought that the spirit inside his own Keyblade could have ended up as one of these ghastly beings was unsettling.

Sora was about to move in and strike when he heard a familiar sound coming from above, like that of a Gummi Ship engine. Sora's eyes narrowed and he looked up. A grin spread across his features.

Shots rang out, splitting the air before hitting their targets. The Wraith were vanquished in an instead by the destructive firepower of the ship above them. The longer he stood there, the more Sora realized that it was less of a Gummi Ship as it was a flying pirate ship. Just when he and Luna had felt things couldn't get any better, it seemed the fates had one more surprise in store for them.

"And that was but a mere taste of the Brynhildr's fire power. I assure you she can do so much more."

"Balthier!" They exclaimed in unison as the sky pirate peered over the edge of the flying ship.

"Are Fran, Aya and Kupopo up there with you?" Luna asked with a hopeful look.

"Why don't you come on up and ask them yourselves," Balthier said.

Luna laughed and exchanged grins with Sora before looking back up. "We'll be right there!"

"Come to the ruins. We'll land there!" Balthier yelled before disappearing from view. The trio watched as the airship manoeuvred around in a U-turn before heading for the designated meeting point. The heavy wind brought on by the airship's engines soon resided and Luna skipped forward. Putting some distance between herself and the canvas of the trees, she turned around to face Sora.

"I'll race you! I bet I could win even while wearing this," she said, showing off her saree.

"That's the best joke you've made in a long time. But who am I to shy from competition? You're on!"

As Sora and Luna raced back to the temple, it hadn't crossed their minds that they had left behind an overwhelmed King Louie. For the first time in a while, Sora felt purely happy. There was no fear, no worry, only his friends to look forward to and his girlfriend by his side, or slightly behind as it just so happened to be in their race. What this meant, Sora could have easily assumed then, was that the happiness meant trouble was usually not too far behind. That recurring cycle seemed to be the narrative of his life recently. He could dwell on that thought, but in a world of uncertainty, it was pointless to think about what would come next when preserving what was in front of him right now was more important.

Finally at the temple, he and Luna feasted their eyes on a full view of the Brynhildr. The hull was mainly comprised of steel plating and the masts, all six of them, took the shape of angel wings. The bowsprit as well also seemed to be made of some metal that Sora had never seen before.

Arms suddenly wrapped around Sora's neck and he felt a weight push down on him, forcing him to bend over.

"Isn't she a beauty? I call her Brynhildr, partly because it's a play on my last name," Hattie Byrne cackled as she squeezed him tightly.

"Not now Hattie! You're choking me," Sora pleaded, tapping on her arms around his neck.

"Hattie? As in Hattie Byrne?" Luna asked with an incredulous look. "You murdered Elizabeth's father!"

"I did, but I've put it all behind me now. I've already made a promise to Sora to go down the clean road from now on, well, as soon as I've reached Treasure Planet anyway," Hattie replied.

Luna looked on in disbelief before looking at Sora. "You're going to give her a chance?"

"Well, I don't quite see it that way. The less people we have to go after, the easier it is on us," Sora said.

"So what? You're saying if I kill someone and then say, oops, sorry, won't do it again, I can be let off easy? She's a criminal! Just because it makes our lives easier, doesn't make it right!" Luna asserted angrily.

Hattie uncoupled her arms from Sora and stepped back from them. "I can see I'm ruining the reunion. I need to get my crew anyway so… don't leave without us, 'kay?"

Sora and Luna watched as Hattie departed back through the jungle with worried and annoyed looks respectively. Luna pursed her lips tightly and went back to glaring at Sora.

"Okay, let me explain," Sora started.

"I wasn't letting you before?" Luna asked.

"You… were making angry face at me and you still are. Look, you were the one who told me that we couldn't fight this war on our own. I listened and I was going to find Moira's Crescent and ask them to help. I probably still will. But what's really the difference here between these guys and Moira's Crescent? Hattie's group killed Governor Swan, even if under the orders of the East India Company, I understand that's bad. But let's not act like Moira's Crescent hasn't tried to kill me on several occasions. Is one necessarily better than the other just because one failed where the other succeeded?"

"Could you actually look at Elizabeth and tell her that you're working together with the killers of her father?" Luna asked.

"I'm sure I couldn't. But that's fine, because I've done worse things and you know it. I hope that I'll never have to do something like what I did back in Ratigan's lair, but I will have to do something, and it won't be something I like. If Hattie has to face her justice by the end of this then so be it, but right now we need all the help we can get," Sora said.

Luna's mouth curled as she looked into Sora's eyes. "I still don't trust them. While I won't defend Moira's Crescent for going after you, they did seem to want to protect the world. These guys just seem in it only for themselves."

"Oh yeah, protect the world at the expense of killing me. You justifying their actions is still defending them!"

"Ow!"

The two spun around to see Fran dragging a wincing Aya out from the shadows of the airship.

"It is rude to listen in on others, you know," Fran said, throwing her forward.

"Ah, sorry, guys. I was about to join you but then I'd never heard Luna angry before and curiosity got the better of me," Aya apologized.

"Don't worry. I'm just so glad the two of you are alright," Luna said, moving in to hug Aya. Soon, she let go and looked around inquisitively. "Where's my little Moogle buddy?"

" _Kupooooo_ _!_ "

"Why does he always do this?" Sora muttered to himself as Kupopo flew in and snuggled into Luna's chest.

"Ooh, is somebody a tad jealous?" Aya asked, nudging him slightly on the shoulder.

"Jealous of what? There's nothing there!" Sora replied.

Luna winced and she turned to him slowly with gritted teeth. "What did you say?"

"Huh? I said there's nothing there-" Sora, initially oblivious to Luna's anger, soon cut himself off when he realized what he had implied. "Err, no, that's not what I meant! There's obviously something _there_ , but… wait, that's probably not helping, is it?"

"Just keep digging that grave of yours, bud," Aya said, garnishing a sympathetic smile.

Balthier stepped out of the ship and threw up his hand. "Take my word for it. The lady always wins, even when they're wrong."

"Especially when they're wrong. I get things wrong sometimes but staying angry at Caleb until he gives in usually does the trick. Kind of came to point where I'd just purposely be wrong just so I could have the upper hand," Aya told him.

"Uh huh. Or maybe you're just a sadist," Sora said. Hearing more voices over by the bridge, he looked in its direction to see Baloo and Bagheera talking with each other and Xion slightly apart from them, looking over the bridge. Quietly excusing himself from the others, he walked over to the bridge and leaned against the railing. "What's on your mind?"

"No, I was just thinking about the ship. It came from down there. Did another civilization really come to our world? Because if it were when the worlds were apart then I can accept that, but if it came here before the world split, that means there are whole actual other worlds with people in them," Xion said. "And that's a pretty scary thought. You think they take just one look at our mess of a world and say 'Not going there'?"

"Maybe theirs is worse. I'd figure if you were pretty content about your own world, you wouldn't bother to go looking for another one," Sora said. "Though they could also just be curious, I guess. Like it really matters. We need to save our own world first before looking to others."

Xion nodded in approval and raised her hand, waving past him. Looking around, Sora saw Luna waving back.

"Sora… I can't come with you," Xion said, dropping her hand.

"Come on, Xion. It'll only be for a few days. We'll be there and back once Balthier and Hattie get their treasure. And it's a world made of gold, supposedly. Are you really going to turn down the chance to see something like that?" Sora asked. He folded his arms and gave her a charming smile. "Come on. You owe yourself this. Take some time off from being all dark and brooding, whatever it is that you do, and come with us, Boco included, of course."

"I'm not being dark and brooding," Xion denied with a small smile that indicated she certainly didn't believe her own words.

"It's okay, Xion. I know the signs. You might even consider me an expert in recognizing the dark and broody," Sora said. Xion let out a chuckle and even though it was a small victory, Sora hoped to see many more from her. Anything to get her mind off the past for even a brief moment.

"Don't get me wrong. I'm sure it would be fun, and maybe I can go myself someday, but not now. I'll keep clearing your path from below so that when you return, you'll be safer. That and I don't think interspace travel was designed with Chocobos in mind. I doubt I'll find any Chocobo feed on that ship," Xion said. She coyly backed away from him and held out her hand. "It's been a good time, Sora. Until we meet again."

"And how will that happen?" Sora asked, looking at her hand. "It's just that… it's the uncertainty that hurts. I don't know where any of you guys are."

"You know, I think a fourteen year old boy once said this, and though they aren't exactly from my memories, I do still remember them. 'Our hearts are connected,'" Xion said. "If you think there was a reason we met here today, then keep walking and we will meet again. There's no need to hope either, because it will definitely come true."

With that, Xion walked off, stopping for a bit to talk to and hug Luna before setting off again.

"She's a strange one. Though I suppose that's to be expected. You all are," Bagheera said to Sora's side.

"She's just finding herself right now. Something happened a while back that hurt her, both inside and out. I'm sure she'll find herself again, but even if she does find something else, we'll be waiting for her with open arms," Sora said. He tilted his head to Baloo and smiled. "Forget about your worries and your strife, right?"

Baloo chuckled and patted him on the back. "You got it, kid."

* * *

The Brynhildr was more of a luxury ship than one typical of its looks. Heading into the quarterdeck, Sora and Luna (who had replaced her saree for her original clothes) found stairs connecting to different levels of the ship. At the top, they encountered a lounge, complete with a bar counter and drinks on shelves as well as a poker table in the center.

Heading down, the lower deck consisted of the kitchens though they certainly weren't going to be eating any of the things they had in stock lest they were craving for a quick death. Instead, King Louie had generously supplied them with a whole bunch of bananas in a basket. It wasn't much to live on but it was hopefully enough for them until they could find more food. And he hoped that would be soon, because he, Luna, Balthier and Fran, Aya, Kupopo and Hattie and her crew all aboard the ship was sure to be a recipe for disaster.

"Unfurl the sails and prepare for lift off!" Hattie yelled, watching as her group ran back and forth in hastily on the top deck.

"Sorry, may be mistaken but here I almost thought you were taking it upon yourself to carry out the captain's duties for him," Balthier cut in.

"Well, duh. I _am_ the captain after all," Hattie said. She attempted to walk away but Balthier stepped in front of her.

"Hm, now there's a contradiction if there ever was one. Wouldn't you say, Fran?" Balthier asked.

Fran stepped out from behind Hattie and walked over to Balthier's side. "Indeed. The way I remember it, we took this ship first before you chanced upon it."

"And what I see in front of us is not a captain but a murderer and her merry crew who we were gracious enough to have accompany us. You're getting your share of the treasure. Be thankful and don't get in our way," Balthier said.

"And we're off to a great start," Luna sarcastically commented to Sora and Aya.

"These guys… they're Oberian members?" Aya asked.

Sora nodded. "Yeah, you seen them before?"

"Well, I've heard of a rebellious band of misfits that were within their group. Though they had a knack for causing trouble, their synergy was highly recognized even outside of Oberian. Try as you might, I don't think you'd find as close-knit a team as them. I wonder if that's Hattie's doing."

"Oh, sure, I suppose you'd have to be that co-ordinated to murder other people," Luna replied with a frown.

"You really aren't going to let this go, are you?" Sora asked.

"No. No I won't," Luna said.

"Well, I hate to say it but get used to it. We might be spending a few days with her and I'd rather those days be spent peacefully as opposed to us all just screaming our heads off at each other," Sora said. "You don't have to like her. You don't have to forgive her, but, and I'm thinking about you here, don't torture yourself by making things awkward, because you might regret it."

As Luna looked on thoughtfully, Sora turned and headed towards the wheelhouse. Balthier seemed to be getting a feel for the wheel, excessively so to the point where it almost reminded Sora of a child enamoured by a simple object.

"Is that wheel really so important that you have to stand around admiring it? There are others around here too," Sora asked.

Balthier returned a small smile in response to his question before looking back to the wheel. "When you've been on the sea and up in the sky as long as I have, you come to understand the importance of getting a good feel for the instruments that will oft save your life. Don't tell me you just jump in without any idea what you're doing whenever you pilot your Gummi Ship?"

Sora raised his eyebrows and held up a finger. "Well… I actually prefer to get a handle on things through experience and-"

"Now I know why you ended up in Davy Jones' locker," Balthier said.

"Hey! That was Luna, not me, and besides, that Kraken was huge. I doubt you would have done any better," Sora said.

"You're right. I certainly wouldn't have been idiotic enough to go up against something like that in the first place," Balthier replied.

"Urgh, I just can't win today," Sora groaned.

"No luck in love, no luck with sky pirates. Well, if you're ready, let's set sail for brighter skies, shall we?" Balthier said. Sora grinned and nodded and Balthier grabbed onto the wheel with both hands as he yelled out to the deck below. "Tis a joyous day to sail the sea of the stars! Ladies. Gentlemen. Let's get to work. Fran, full speed ahead!"

"Aye-aye, captain," Fran said. The sails unfurled and the ship began to move. An ecstatic Sora ran down the stairs and towards the railing where Luna and the others were. The wind started to pick up, disturbing the trees even far off from them.

Below them were an astounded Bagheera and Baloo. Sora grinned and waved at them until they were completely obstructed by the floor.

"We did it, boys and girls! We made it! We're going to Treasure Bloody Planet!" Hattie yelled, dancing on the spot.

"This sucks. This ship doesn't have any sockets. How am I supposed to charge my stuff?" her younger sister, Sarah, said with a look of nonchalance.

"Can't you get away from technology for even a week? Seriously, do you think about anything else?" the older sibling, Vera, replied.

"Of course I do, like the conservation of various animal species and their habitats as well as the environment. You know, the same environment you guys do such a brilliant job of protecting? So excuse me if I'm a little apathetic to the real world. At least my games don't disappoint me."

Vera, however, rolled her eyes at this. "Oh, grow up."

"You first."

"Hey, hey, hey. This has been a dream of ours, well mainly mine, for a long time now and I'm not going to have you bicker with each other through the entire journey like wee ones," Hattie lectured. A smile spread across her face and she looked down. "By the way, I kind of borrowed your gaming thingy while you were sleeping to play some Ace Invaders. Guess who beat your high scoreeeee~?"

"Huh? No way!" Sarah quickly looked down at the screen and quit out of her current game, quickly moving down the list. Vera scoffed at them both before walking off to a few members of their group.

On the other side of the deck, Luna reached out for a few birds that were levelled with the ship's altitude. She couldn't quite reach them, of course, but being near them was enough to make her happy. Her eyes briefly glossed over Sora before she turned to look at him, having noticed in that brief moment that Sora had been watching her. She beamed at him and went back to watching as the Airship flew into the clouds.

They soon emerged above the cumulus clouds to see puffy white stretching out for miles.

"It's so pretty! I always wondered what it was like above the clouds," Aya said, resting her arms and chin on top of the railing. "And the Sun. It's beautiful."

"Yeah, it really is," Sora agreed. "I take it you've never used a Gummi Ship before?"

Aya shook her head. "Gummi Blocks weren't so common back then. If you did find one, I certainly don't think you'd be fighting in a war."

"You get paid during the war?" Sora asked.

"Of course. When everything ended, we had to have enough to go back to the way our lives used to be. Maybe even something better. Still, it's hard to imagine what a normal life would be. What does that even mean?" Aya asked with a small laugh.

"Probably what Caleb's going through right now," Sora said. "I tried living an ordinary life not too long ago. I didn't want using the Keyblade to be my whole life. The problem was that when I actually settled down, it felt like a part of me was missing. As much as I didn't care to admit it, I enjoyed doing this. Every single moment of it. It's who I am, but it doesn't have to be who you are. If you aren't cut out for this, don't force yourself into being someone you aren't, because you'll begin to hate yourself."

Aya smiled sadly and closed her eyes. "Thanks, Sora. I'll take those words to heart."

"You know, when I was a child, I kind of thought clouds were made of the same stuff they use to make cotton candy. Didn't help that my parents perpetuated my beliefs because they thought it was cute," Luna reminisced with a dreamy expression. When she looked up, it was at the smirking faces of Sora and Aya. "Oh, come on! Don't tell me you guys didn't think stuff like that too!"

This was followed with dismissals of "Nuh uh," and "Can't remember that," which caused Luna droop her head low.

Sora looked at her with a sympathetic smile. "You know what they do remind me off from up here though? Snow. Haven't had a good snow day in a long time."

"Ooh, ooh, I know this one," Luna said, perking up. "We did this in geography class. The reason they look like that is because of water vapor in the air condensing to form ice crystals. There are these things called Aerosol particles and when the water vapor and those particles collide-"

"Er, yeah, thanks for the history lesson," Sora intervened, rapidly blinking.

"It's geography," Luna corrected.

"Shows how much I care," Sora whispered.

"You should if you paid any attention to what Shantotto was saying. This means that while up here, Blizzard and Aero are our most powerful magic. Conversely, Fire and Thunder are weaker," Luna said.

"Shantotto?" Aya asked.

"Our teacher. Our magic was getting weaker due to Kingdom Hearts growing weaker so she tweaked our mana cores to work differently. Long story short, we drank a potion, it was really disgusting, but it allowed her to re-train us in how we use magic," Sora said. "You haven't had problems with your magic, have you?"

"No, I don't think so, or at least I haven't felt any change," Aya said. "I think I remember feeling really groggy when I first woke up in this world but that would be normal, I think, having not used my body for so long."

"Yeah, that's something different," Sora agreed. He walked over to the railing again and just stared into the distance, watching the curvature of the world. Suddenly, that fluffy expanse was wiped away by light and he was instead greeted to a view of the universe, with its dark energy, matter and interstellar gases.

Sora could hear audible gasps all around him, and though they had seen it plenty of times before, Sora and Luna found themselves grinning uncontrollably.

"You had _this_ to yourselves all this time? Not fair! NOT FAIR!" Aya fawned, burying her head into Luna's shoulder.

"Heh, so this is how it felt seeing me gawk at this the first time, Sora," Luna mused.

"The first time and every other time after that, yeah. The glint never really left your eye," Sora said.

"And that led to you falling in love with her? Aw, dat's so adowable!" Aya cooed.

Sora covered the right side of his face with his hand. "Not when you say it like that, it isn't."

"They call this the Etherium."

Sora jumped out the sound of the voice and spun around to see Fran right next to him. "Agh! Don't… do that!"

"I apologize. Still, it's something of worth note. Within a certain amount of space exists the Etherium, where all air draws. Outside of that, airless. It's how we're breathing right now. You may also know it in short as Ether, which helps you restore your mana. The cores of our magic and the Etherium are inextricably linked. I imagine since you're experiencing more concentrated doses of it right now, you should be able to cast magic without feeling tired."

"A temporary buff then? I'll take it," Sora said with a grin. "How do you even know so much about it anyway?"

"Balthier told me," Fran simply stated.

Sora raised a brow. "Okaaaay… how did Balthier know that?"

"Because unlike you, I didn't end up in Davy Jones' locker," Balthier said, joining them. Sora looked up to the helm to see Hattie's strawberry blonde hair from the back obscuring the wheel.

"So how exactly are we going to get to Treasure Planet? You know where it is?" Sora asked.

"No, but this does," Balthier said, showing them Jack Sparrow's compass.

"It still works out here? Cool!" Sora exclaimed.

"Well, it's not for certain, but I'll use two people as a cross reference with myself. Hattie, who most certainly has a desire for finding the treasure, and you, who I'm quite certain has other priorities on his mind," Balthier said. He held out the compass for Sora who took it into his hands and looked down at it. The arrow slowly moved from the north position until it settled on the south, towards Sora, or towards the world they were leaving behind, he was sure.

"That's a pretty good way of making sure we're on track. I guess if Hattie is going to be the person that gets us there without getting us lost, we really shouldn't do anything to annoy her," Sora said, glancing at Luna who narrowed her eyes at him.

"You make it sound like I'm just bursting to instigate something. All I'm doing is adhering to my beliefs," Luna replied. She smiled at him and swivelled around to where Vera was. "Still, I suppose I shouldn't pass up the chance to at least make our journey somewhat pleasant. Maybe I'll even start to see what you see in her. No promises."

Sora grinned and extended his hand. "Then let's get started, shall we?"

"Ah-ah-ah. Not just yet. Luna, you remember that thing we were talking about back on The Sheva. You know, _the thing_?" Aya whispered the last two words.

"Why do you have to make it out like you're doing something illegal?" Sora asked with a shrug. He looked between them. "Are you doing something illegal?"

"Don't be ridiculous. Don't worry, we'll be back in an hour or so. Don't come looking for us," Luna warned with a pointed finger before disappearing into the quarterdeck alongside Aya.

* * *

 **A/N: So coming up, we get some bonding time with Hattie's group, we meet up with the characters of Treasure Planet and we finally see what Luna and Aya are so secretive about. Spoilers- It's a haircut. I'm sorry for spoiling that but I just didn't want you to hold your breath for that long. If I were a Sony movie trailer, I'd have spoiled so much more a long time ago.**


	39. Untold Truths

Chapter 38

Untold Truths

"What is that you want out of life, Sora?" Balthier asked, as they stared out at bright golden space dust from far away. It truly was unfair that so few were able to catch a glimpse of a beauty that made pale even that which was found in ordinary life. It was even better that Sora was able to experience that with friends. He had managed to snag a photo with his PHS but seeing a still image was nothing like being up close and personal.

Sora frowned and looked away from the dazzling display of dust. "What's with this question all of a sudden?"

"Oh, just that we all need in life. Something that gets us up every morning, so to speak. I imagine for you that would be Luna," Balthier said.

"I mean, she's not the only one I live for. Sure, she's my girlfriend but I'd be lying if I said I knew how to do the whole romance thing properly. I'm pretty awkward whenever I try to do that stuff. She's like a best friend who, hopefully, I can spend the rest of my life with. Isn't it that way with you and Fran?"

"Fran and I? Hmph, no. Our relationship is strictly amicable. That said, I completely understand why you'd think that given the charm I exude as the leading man," Balthier said.

Sora smiled and shook his head. "Uh huh. Anyway, let's say you get to Treasure Planet. What then? I mean, you've found it. The ultimate treasure. What will get you out of bed every morning? You going back to your sister?"

"Err, ah, yes…" Balthier said. He seemed distracted by something, which was very abnormal of the usually focused sky pirate.

"Balthier?" Sora asked when the doors to the quarterdeck opened. Sora's voice was caught in his throat as he watched Luna walking out timidly behind Aya and Kupopo, her hair cut short and wavy.

"Well? How does it look?" Luna asked.

Sora spared little time in answering. "Golden."

Luna grinned sheepishly and walked up to him. "I guess I just wanted a new start so I asked Aya to help me the day before we left Gravity Falls. We bought everything we needed but I kept putting it off because I wasn't sure if it would look good or if you'd like it."

"Yeah, I used to do my little sister's hair all the time and, well, she's not here anymore… but I did the best I could with what I managed to salvage from The Sheva," Aya said.

"I love it," Sora said. "Besides, I got my own hair cut so I'd say we're about even."

Luna giggled and before looking down next to him. "What's that?"

"Huh?" Sora asked. He followed her gaze down to his ankles and jumped away in fright upon seeing a strange robot hiding behind him. "Aaah! How did that get there?"

The small robot looked at them inquisitively with its binocular-shaped eyes before moving past them on its treads.

"I think someone's got an admirer," Balthier said to Sora before kneeling down to pick up the robot. "Now where did you come from, little one?"

The robot made some weird whistling noises as Balthier gave it a quick look before setting it back down. He looked at them with a satisfied smile.

"A waste disposal unit. Probably not too uncommon on alien vessels such as this. I imagine it probably sat dormant on this ship for quite some time until it picked up on our life signals. Its designation is Wall-E," he said, pointing to the logo on the bottom right of the robot's body.

"Wall-E, huh? Aw, it's pretty cute. Hey there, buddy," Sora greeted, extending out his hand. Wall-E turned to him and slowly reached out with one of its hydraulic arms. Sora grinned and wrapped his hand around its three stocky fingers, gently shaking them up and down.

"Wa-wa-WwALL-E!" The robot sounded out its name with some difficulty.

Sora laughed and gave a brisk nod. "That's right. And my name's Sora."

"So-O-o…ra?"

Sora nodded again as Luna and Aya sat down next to him, both introducing themselves. Again, the pronunciation of their names seemed a huge hurdle for Wall-E to overcome.

"Hey, what's up with him?" Sora asked.

"Hasn't been fine-tuned in years, I imagine. Might need a software upgrade as well though I can't say for sure. Messing with otherworld technology could amount to pretty dicey business in the wrong hands," Balthier said.

"I think this is fine. I like his derpyness. The best robots have to have a character trait of some sort," Luna said. "Want to come with us, Wall-E?"

"Waaalll-eeeee!" The robot cheered, spinning on its treads.

"Looks like we got a new addition to the team. Alright, so now we get to know these guys, right?" Luna glanced towards a few of Hattie's group all huddled near each other. In the middle of them, a woman in their group was tap dancing in beat to the singing of her peers.

"I think so. Let's see…" Sora scanned the selection offered to them. The easiest would be to talk to Hattie, though Sora was sure that Luna wouldn't be particularly happy with that. That left someone close to her…

His eyes finally settled on Vera and Sarah, who were not in the immediate crowd of the group but to the right of them, bobbing their heads along to the song. Vera however soon stopped when she noticed Sora looking at them and walked over to them.

"You know it's impolite to stare," Vera said.

"I wasn't doing it intentionally. Anyway, we just wanted to get to know you guys better. We are going to be sharing a ship for a while," Sora said.

"Know us, huh? What can I say that hasn't been said before? We went to the same academy, and then there was a war. I still remember the tension in the air just before it was announced we were going to war. Everyone was really nervous and scared. We all wished dearly for a world where the founders of our factions could resolve their issues peacefully. That wish obviously didn't come true."

Aya nodded her head. "I was like that too. There were a lot of people who fantasized about running away and deserting their faction for a normal life, but if you did, that was classed as insubordination and you were punished for it."

"So you were basically armies, right? No need to mince words. Just doing your masters' bidding. They say jump, you ask how high," Balthier said.

"I suppose that's an adequate way to put it. I wouldn't say the factions are at war right now though. They're not like they were before. We know the costs of war and no one's willing to risk that when they have other goals in mind. There will, of course be conflicts between factions when a conflict of interest arises, but I don't think you'll hear anyone jump at the ready to declare war again. Not any time soon. I certainly know our Oberian faction is in no condition to head straight back into a war anyway and Cephadalus neither. What I expect is that they'll first focus on rebuilding their factions," Vera said.

"Okay… you say Cephadalus and Oberian won't be a problem, but that still leaves Horus and the Lunarians," Sora said.

"I never said they wouldn't become a problem. As I said, they'll be rebuilding their forces. I've even heard rumors that Cephadalus and Oberian may be settling their differences and trying to unite under a single banner. For the higher ups in both factions, the shame of falling behind the other two factions is much harder to bear than putting aside their own pride. They'll of course have to make concessions on both sides but if the deal goes through, the Lunarians and Horus may find their progress stunted by the rise of this united faction."

"Would the Lunarians and Horus team up to make sure that wouldn't happen?" Luna asked.

It was Aya who spoke. "Not likely. If there's anyone those two hate more than Cephadalus and Oberian, it's each other. We're both kind of the reason the war started in the first place. Cephadalus and Oberian then joined in because they had their own differences that they wanted to settle."

"You were in the war? Which faction?" Vera asked her.

"Horus, first under General Seren before transferring to Janus' division," Aya explained.

"The Black Ops division of Horus, huh? So you did all their dirty work," Vera said.

Aya frowned. "Dirty work? What? We were just a division of Horus like any other."

"Is that what they told you? I've heard all sorts of things about Janus back in the day. He was originally in Oberian like us but defected to Horus. He was apparently known to have a knack for getting suspects who were co-operating with other factions to 'confess'. I'm pretty sure most of them were innocent. Aside from that, he was also the right-hand man to the leader of Horus before Irva Torvald, Varin Torvald. Indeed, old Varin's hands could be left virtually clean, so to speak, while Janus was there to take care of loose threads. Now this part is just hearsay, but even after Irva managed to get rid of his father's close circle shortly after the old man's passing, he didn't completely strip Janus of his power within the faction either."

"Like father, with many exceptions like son, then?" Sora asked.

"Or keep your friends close and your enemies even closer. Maybe Irva felt Janus was the one he needed to watch out for the most," Luna suggested.

"That may have more truth in it than you give it credit for actually. Janus never really mentioned Irva much at all when I was still with his group. We were basically divorced from the affairs of the main faction. I'm sure, if what you say is true, then Irva kept Janus close to quell a possible rebellion," Aya said. "I also didn't know so much of our internal side was exposed to so many outside our faction, and yet they've managed to keep that secret from its own members."

"Don't feel left out. I'm sure that's the same for any one of our factions, even my own. 'Just a bunch of arsewipes sipping wine while watching us bleed misfortune', took quote the words of one Hattie Byrne," Vera said.

"Can't say she doesn't have a way with words," Balthier said.

"So what about you? What are your goals?" Vera asked, placing a hand on her chin.

"To take back our world. Once we've done what we've been doing for the past few months, we're taking Radiant Garden back from Horus and then we deal with the rest of them," Sora said.

Vera gave them a lopsided smile. "Taking on Horus? Not by yourselves, I'm sure, because that would be a foolish move."

"We have friends, but we need more. We were hoping you'd help," Sora said.

"And here when I thought you wanted us out, you pull us back in," Vera said, shaking her head both in amusement and disbelief.

"Okay, what if we I can guarantee that you'll have a place to live in Radiant Garden if you help? I'm friends with the group who helped to bring Radiant Garden back after it had been taken over by darkness, the same group of people who were forced into hiding by Irva and his lackeys. If you help us, you're already doing your group a massive favor because I have no doubt in my mind that they'll help you get a place to live," Sora said.

"Well, it's not so much that I mind as it is what Hattie thinks, although I'm sure she'll be wondering something along the lines of 'Do they have any mansions?' Well? Do they?" Vera asked with narrow eyes.

"Err-"

Suddenly, Vera raised a finger before Sora could say anything more. "Don't answer that. That said, I'll raise the point up with Hattie for you," Vera said.

Sora grinned and leaned back against the airship's railing. "Thanks. I appreciate it."

"I was wondering if I could ask you for a favor of my own," Aya joined in soon after. "I'm looking for the Lunarians. Janus aims to destroy them from the inside and I need to warn them before it's too late."

"A member of Horus wanting to help the Lunarians against another Horus member? What's the world coming to these days?" Vera mused.

"An ex-Horus member," Aya corrected. "This goes way past allegiances. It's about what's right. And I think even you've realized how tribal the concept of factions can be otherwise you'd be with the rest of yours. What matters now is the shared common interest between all of us when we first joined our groups, being that we swore to safeguard the light. If the light is to live on then Janus cannot get his way."

"Wow! That got even me pumped up and I'm not even in one of these factions!" Luna exclaimed.

Vera smiled at this and placed a hand on Aya's shoulder. "You're forward-thinking, unlike most of the people in our factions. I admire that. I feel the same way. Maybe then we could accomplish something that I didn't think possible in my lifetime, though I suppose there was a bit of jumping through time to get there. As for the Lunarians, they should be where they've always been—near Quartz Town."

"Quartz? Like the crystals we found in Gravity Falls?" Sora asked.

"Well there are a lot of clocks in the town, and those clocks happen to have quartz crystals in them which allow them to accurately tell time, probably more so than a mechanical clock. I don't think there's anything particularly special about those quartz crystals though. There just happen to be an abundance of those minerals near that town. Or there were. Haven't been there in a couple hundred years or so, you know?" Aya explained. "It's a shame really. It's a nice seaside town with a lovely beach but the town happens to have an obsession with time."

"Fortunately, the Lunarians' headquarters isn't actually in the town proper, but you can still hear the town's bells from there if I remember correctly," Vera said.

"Then that's where I'm headed next. Hopefully it's not too late," Aya said. A spontaneous amount of noise caused them all to turn to Hattie's group, watching as one of the male members piggyback rode on a more muscular man, much to the cheering and taunting of the crowd.

"Well, that's my cue to step in. Oh, before I go, I have a favor of my own. It's nothing really demanding, don't worry. I would ask that you hang out with my sister Sarah whenever possible. If you like video games, I'm sure it'll be easier for you. She can't seem to take her eyes of them," Vera said.

"What, is she one of those shut-in types?" Sora asked.

"Well, she does enjoy going outdoors, but she an introvert. I suppose I am too but I don't mind the occasional interaction as long as it doesn't include too many people at once," Vera said.

"Aw, I'm the same way. I've been seeing a lot more of the world and making new friends with Sora's help but I'm still kind of shy when it comes to meeting new people. I think I can relate," Luna said. Sora could tell she was a lot more open with interacting with Hattie's group now than she had been before, though whether the same applied to Hattie remained unclear.

"Yeah, count me in too," Sora said.

Vera looked at them both and cast her eyes downwards, smiling. "Wonderful. Heh."

"Something funny?" Sora asked.

"Well, I guess Hattie really did pick the right guy to fall in love with this time. Who knew? I guess a broken clock is right twice a day," Vera said before walking. Sora gave a nervous laugh and continued to look forward, trying his best to ignore a pair of glaring daggers set on the back of his head.

* * *

 _Sora…_

 _Sora…_

 _Sora, I'm not…_

"YEUL!"

Sora rose up from his sleep, panting hard. The boundless vista of space surrounded him, reminding him of where he was. Originally, he hadn't felt tired so he had thought to hang out on the top deck for a while. He had probably fallen asleep without even realizing it.

He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths before opening them again. This time, they noticed a pair of legs standing in front of him. He looked up, past the teddy bear in her arms to see Sarah Byrne looking down at him with tired eyes.

"You talk in your sleep."

"Ah, heh heh. Sorry. Did I wake you?" Sora asked.

"No, I just couldn't sleep," Sarah said.

"Oh," was Sora's reply. As much as he wanted to say more, his mind was still on his dream. It hadn't been unlike what he had dreamt a few months ago, when he had still been on the Destiny Islands. Yeul had called to him then as she did now. But why? She was in the Perpetual Divergence. Was she trying to contact him from there? Was she in trouble?

And why was Sarah holding the stuffed toy up to his face right now?

"Err, nice bear?" he complimented with a questioning glance.

"It's not a bear. It's Totoro," Sarah said.

"Okay... hi, Totoro," Sora said, waving awkwardly at the plush toy.

"Why are you waving at it? It can talk back, moron," Sarah pointed out with a bored look on her face.

"I know that!" Sora snapped before taking a deep breath. He was dealing with a girl who was younger than him… while also having a couple hundred years on him at the same time. That was kind of creepy. "Why did you show it to me anyway?"

"Usually when something's on my mind, having Totoro with me makes me forget about things." She stared at the plushie for a moment before looking up at Sora. "Well? Did it make you forget? Did it? Did it?"

"Well, now I just feel annoyed so I guess so?" Sora said, having to lean back every time Sarah showed him the toy. "So since you're carrying it, does that mean you have something on your mind? Sorry, _had_ something?"

"Wow, you must be a genius. Even after I told you that I couldn't sleep." Sarah looked off in the distance and Sora winced. He really couldn't be bothered to deal with sarcasm right now. "It's just an annoying nightmare."

"Join the club," Sora said, letting out a yawn.

"So who's Yeul?" Sarah asked.

The question completely caught Sora off guard and he turned to face her. "Hey, that cheating!"

"What are you talking about? You're weird. You remind me of a protagonist in one of the games I used to play. Maybe I should call you prosoragonist. It's like protagonist. But with your name in the middle. I think," Sarah said.

"And you say I'm weird…" Sora muttered. "Speaking of games, what say I play you sometime?"

"Play me?"

"Yeah… err, what do you have on that thing anyway?" Sora asked. As she looked at him unimpressed, Sora's face grew heated. She could at least commend him for trying.

"On my 'thing' I brought four cartridges with me. Right now I'm trying to beat my sister's score in Ace Invaders. Other than that there's a fighting game and a platformer. There was also another game I had, Sugar Rush, it's a racing game, but there's something really weird with it. Whenever I try to get past selecting my kart, the screen just up and glitches out. I might have to find a store with the game and get another copy. I really enjoyed that one as well," Sarah said.

"That sucks. But you seem determined to beat your sister's high score in Ace Invaders so you probably wouldn't have much time for it at the moment anyway," Sora said.

"I tend to be an extremely competitive person. Sometimes, I think people are put off by that and it makes it less fun to play for them," Sarah said. "So if you're going to play with me, you should know that beforehand."

"I know a little bit about competition and taking things too seriously. Me and my friend Riku used to compete over the tiniest things," Sora said. "Things change with time. Maybe you'll eventually come to realize that some things are more important than competition, like I did."

"Maybe…" Sarah said. "But for now I intend to crush my sister's score beneath my virtual heels. It must not be allowed to stand."

Well, he was definitely starting to understand why others didn't play with her. He looked to his right when he caught sight of something in the distance. A blazing fire raged, lighting up the dark reaches of space like a glowing horizon.

"What's that?" Sora alerted Sarah to it.

Sarah studied it for a moment and bit her lower lip. "Trouble. Look, they're headed our way."

"Huh?" Sora turned back to the ship, except that she wasn't referring to fire in the distance, but the small sailboarders headed their way.

"Pirates… in space," Sarah said. "It's just like Ace Invaders!"

"Must we compare everything to something? Anyway, if these guys think they're getting on our ship, they're going to be seriously disappointed," Sora said, summoning his Keyblade. Sarah summoned her own and transformed it into a crossbow, resting it on top of the railing.

"I'll cover the front," Sora said before running to the bow of the ship. As the sailboards closed in, Sora unleashed a salvo of magic while keeping on his toes. Firaga, Blizzaga and Aeroga magic, amplified by the Etherium surrounding them, exploded, completely wiping out the pirates. His magic didn't seem to be draining him much either, making him grin in excitement.

From the other side of the ship, Sarah quickly sniped with precise accuracy a few of the sailboards heading towards the ship. As the last few came towards her, she transformed the rifle back into a normal Keyblade and aimed it at them.

The sailboards all started to act uncontrollably, wobbling about before changing their course. The sailboards all headed straight for each other, colliding and blowing up. She lowered her Keyblade and smiled as Sora arrived at her side again.

"You hacked their sailboards?" Sora asked.

"You can call me Master Hacker," Sarah replied.

"I'm not calling you that," Sora said. He looked over to the fire in the distance before heading up towards the wheel.

"What are you doing?" Sarah asked, grabbing Totoro from the floor before following.

"Maybe those pirates raided that ship. If there's anyone still there we have to help," Sora said. He grabbed hold of the wheel and spun it to the right until the airship was pointed straight for the burning wreckage.

"You really are the prosoragonist, aren't you?" Sarah said.

"It's not about being a 'prosoragonist' or whatever you want to call it. It's about putting others before yourself," Sora said.

The Brynhildr soon reached the ship and Sora brought their own ship as close to the flaming ship as possible before running over to the side. Awaiting him were four people, all uniquely different from each other when it came to appearance.

"Oh, thank goodness! And here I thought we'd never see the light of day again!" cried one of them in relief. He seemed to be some strange mix of a dog and human hybrid.

"No time for tears, Dr. Doppler. Hello there, I am Captain Amelia of the R.L.S Legacy, or I was anyway until those rotten pirates attacked. Mind letting us on board your vessel?" asked a female cat-human hybrid.

"It's scary how formal she is even when her ship's on fire," said the third person who seemed to be the only pure human there.

"Of course. Hurry!" Sora beckoned. He waited by the side to help all of them over to their ship. The last one to come on board was the most unusual of the survivors, with the burly build of a bear crossed with human features, but even that couldn't take away from the cyborg implants on his arm, eye and leg, all on the right half of his body.

"Your parents never told you staring were rude?" the cyborg said, placing his mechanical arm on Sora's shoulder.

"Err…"

The cyborg let out a hearty laugh and wrapped an arm around him. "Just kidding, lad! Stare all you want. Not like you see something like this every day, eh? Name's John Silver."

"Sora. Nice to meet you," Sora said as few more people who had been awakened by the commotion arrived at the top deck to see what was going on. Among them, Sora could spot the tall ears of Fran coming to the front. When they did, Balthier was also with her.

Balthier took one look at the scene and looked away. "Oh no…"

"Ffamran? Is that you?" Silver asked in surprise.

"Of all the people Sora had to go and save, why did it have to be you?" Balthier muttered with an annoyed look.

"Aw, no need to be like that, Ffamra-"

"Don't say that name," Balthier cut in.

Silver smiled at him and carried on as if he hadn't been affected by Balthier's dismissive tone. "I see we have a lot of catching up to do."

"Or none at all. Here's how this is going to work. You stay in your little corner, and I stay in mine," Balthier said. "Then we'll drop you off at the next world we find and be on our way."

"Hold on a moment! We need to get to Treasure Planet," the human boy said, holding out a sphere to show them. "You can't just drop us off. Not when we're this close."

Balthier stiffened and he exchanged quick looks with Fran before walking over to the boy. Taking it from his hands, he turned it around in his hand before holding it up to his face.

"Where did you get this?" he asked. He was serious. More serious than Sora had ever seen Balthier.

"Off a dying pirate who crash landed outside my mother's tavern," said the boy.

Balthier glanced down at the sphere with disdain before handing it back over. "After all these years, he still can't let go."

"Excuse me. Balthier, can you come over here for a second," Sora said, nudging his head to the side. He would get to the bottom of this sooner than later. Balthier's fingers curled before he looked away from them and followed Sora to the opposite side of the ship, Fran in tow. Sora soon stopped and raised his eyebrows as if awaiting an explanation.

"Where do I start…?"

"Balthier lied," Fran said.

Balthier blinked and looked over to Fran. "Well, you could have eased him into it a little bit but yes. I don't have a sister. I'm an only child, and I wasn't originally from your world."

Sora wasn't sure how to react. He imagined that was partly because there were so many things on his mind already that this seemed so inconsequential to him in comparison, and yet he was forced to admit that it hurt.

"If you don't come from our world then where… where do you come from?" Sora asked.

"Somewhere far away. Don't worry. The part about Fran was true at least," Balthier said. Wrinkles appeared on his forehead and he looked down. "I did want to tell you at some point but-"

"Let me guess. You couldn't find the right time? Oh, don't worry. I haven't heard that one before," Sora said. His eyes wandered elsewhere and he shook his head. "Just forget it. I don't have time for you anyway."

Not wanting to hear another word from Balthier, Sora turned on his heel and walked off in, what his mind at least, was a completely random direction. In the end, he had found his way back to Sarah and her Totoro.

"Is something wrong?" Sarah asked.

"I guess… mind if I hold on to Totoro for a bit?" he asked. Sarah smiled and held it out to him.

* * *

Over the course of the next day, Sora spent most of him time hanging out with Luna, Aya, Kupopo and Wall-E as well as the boy who he now knew as Jim Hawkins and John Silver. He also spent a surprising amount of time with Sarah and, by addition, Hattie, who seemed eager for a bonding session. Adversely, he made effort in actually ignoring Balthier and Fran—something he never thought he'd have to do.

The thought of Treasure Planet never really crossed his mind. He just didn't care about the treasure itself and was more along for the ride, an experience he wasn't going to have ruined just because someone had lied to him about a dying sister. He remembered Balthier placing his hand around the locket on his chest the day he had recanted his little tale. He did wonder what that was about, but he thought best not to ask.

"So… how long have you been with the young Master Ffamran?" John Silver asked later on in the day as he instructed Sora on making a good knot with ropes.

"I… really don't want to talk about that," Sora said, passing the thinner rope through the bight he had made with the thicker rope.

"Ah, sorry. But I doubt he meant any harm by it. He's still young and trying to discover himself-"

"Can we… just not… do this right now? Whatever Balthier, Ffamran, whatever he wants to call himself does isn't any of my business," Sora said. Fortunately, Silver seemed to back down after this and continued lecturing Sora about the different types of knots while the teen worked on his. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be too long either before he was confronted once more about it, albeit by a different person.

Luna stepped in front of Sora with her hands on her hips. "Okay, Sora. What's this about?"

"What's what about?"

"You know what I mean. Whenever Balthier and Fran come near us, you just say you have to do something else and walk away. And you won't even look at them. What's going on between you guys?"

Sora pulled at the ropes in his hand only for them to become undone. He shook his head and looked over to Silver. "I think I'll call it for now. Thanks for teaching me though."

"Any time, Sora-lad. Can never know when a rope might save your life," Silver said with a laugh. Sora smiled before taking Luna's hand and leading her to a secluded part of the ship.

"Oh, I can't wait to hear this," Luna muttered to herself. She watched as Sora let out a yawn and stretched his arms. "You okay?"

"Just tired is all. I didn't get much sleep last night. I keep yawning," Sora said.

"Get an early night's sleep then. I know it isn't the most comfortable thing having to sleep with all these people around you but you have to try," Luna said.

"Hmm, I know," Sora said. He figured he was only delaying the inevitable so he decided to spill everything at once to her. "Balthier lied. He lied about having a sister, he lied about her being his motivation to get to Treasure Planet, he lied about being from our world, he lied about everything."

"No way… but why-"

"That's what I'm trying not to wonder about. I don't want to care. I have so many other things to worry about. More important things. But it hurts. The person who I thought I was friends with isn't who I thought they were," Sora said.

"And since when has that ever stopped you?" Luna asked.

"Huh?"

"Well, when I said that I was going to ignore Hattie because I didn't agree with what she did, you jumped at her defence and told me to give her a chance. Now you want to ignore Balthier and Fran and I'm about to try and convince you to give them a chance. Funny how the roles are reversed, huh?" Luna pointed out.

"How are you not angry about this? Besides, it's completely different. As far as I know, Hattie never lied to us," Sora said.

"I mean, I am hurt by this. Making up a dying younger sister whose only wish was to listen to her brother tell her tales about adventures is a pretty scummy thing, as expected of a pirate. But I figure if you're going to go that far to make something like that up, you have to have plenty of regrets in your life. It's like when you pretend to like something just because it's what the popular kids like and you want to fit in. I've done it before so I know. I also know that sooner or later, it's going to catch up with you if you keep building on it," Luna said. She took hold of his hand and gently massaged the back of his hand with her thumb. "If we're going to make any judgements, we should hear the whole story first. That's what I think."

"You really should just say you don't want us separating on bad terms," Sora said.

Luna's mouth formed a perfect circle. "Oh, was that too wordy? I'm not too good at these things. But that does mean you're considering it, right?"

"Well, I have to, otherwise you'd call me a hypocrite," Sora said. He walked away from their corner and looked out to the deck before looking at Luna. "Where is he anyway?"

"Hmm, not sure actually. I'm not seeing Fran around either," Luna said.

"Alright, I'll take a look around for them," Sora said.

"Want me to come with you?"

"Nah. Wouldn't want to take you away from you lovely bonding time with Hattie now, would I?" Sora said.

"Right… I still have to get to that myself… I don't suppose I can take out a rain check on that?"

"Nope," Sora said.

"Oh dear. Well, if this goes south don't expect any more cuddles from me for a week," Luna said.

"Only a week? Meh, I can live with that," Sora said with an unperturbed shrug.

"Oh, you're mean!" Luna said. Sora laughed and watched as she walked off before deciding to head to the captain's quarters first.

From one room to the next he headed in search of Balthier and Fran. Along the way, he encountered a few members of Hattie's group as well as Captain Amelia and Dr. Delbert Doppler.

"Hey, have you guys seen Balthier and Fran?" Sora asked them.

"Oh, I asked them to take care of something in the engine room. Because this is an older ship, I need to ensure that it has the adequate amount of fuel to make the trip back. Furthermore, any burst pipes or damaged equipment are serious hazards that could place our lives in jeopardy," Captain Amelia said. Having been the most experienced of herself, Hattie and Balthier by far, she had effectively taken over the position of captain.

"At least we have someone who's on top of things. How long have you been doing this?" Sora asked.

"This would be my ninth year. I also take great pride in happening to be the youngest person to reach the rank of captain in the navy. Many a year have I seen perils proportional to the sanity of my clients, but none such as this. To think in my lifetime I would get to take on the ultimate treasure. Initially, I thought it to be a farcical and futile endeavour. But the map in the young fellow Hopkins' hands leads me with no choice but to believe otherwise," Amelia said.

"But you'd have to be pretty insane yourself to keep doing this if you know your clients are insane. Er, that wasn't meant to sound like an insult," Sora said.

Amelia chuckled. "No worries. To be frank, I'm starting to think that too. But, as they say, one step at a time."

"Right, well hopefully Balthier and Fran aren't too busy. It was nice meeting you," Sora said. He went back up the stairs and out onto the deck. He looked over to see Luna smiling and nodding along to something Hattie was saying with Aya beside her. With a smile on his face, he opened up the trap door to the ship's hold and made his way down.

The hold was more dimly lit than other areas of the Brynhildr, and given the chance, they would have immediately made to restock the hold with more food. Instead, they had to settle with whatever the survivors of the R.L.S Legacy had managed to salvage from their own ship as well as what Hattie's group had brought.

" _No, sir. No. Look, I haven't lost my eyes on the treasure. There was only a minor complication but we're back on schedule. Ye'll get the prize ye seek soon and we'll both be rich_."

John Silver's voice reached his ears and Sora froze on the spot, noticing a shadow coming towards him. Looking around quickly, he noticed a few boxes of dusty cargo in the corner and hid behind them.

"Uh, yes… there's just one teensy little problem. Your son is here. Looks like he's also after our treasure," Silver said. He was holding a small communicator up to his mouth, though Sora wished he were able to hear what the person on the other side was saying.

"I see… but your own son? Oh, that's cruel. As you wish, sir." The conversation came to an end and Silver pocket the device in his coat pocket before heading for the upper deck. It was at this point that Sora silently yawned and rubbed at his tired eyes, accidently bumping his elbow against one of the boxes.

Silver stopped for a moment and looked over to where Sora was, who was holding his mouth with both hands. He didn't think that cyborg eye of his had x-ray vision or something as equally terrifying, or at least he hoped that Silver wasn't simply elongating the reveal when he already knew who it was.

"Ah, it's just you, Morph. Don't scare me like that. Hah hah, what do you say we go cook our friends up a lovely meal, eh?" Silver said. Sora soon heard the trapdoor close and Sora dropped his hands, breathing heavily.

 _That was close_ , he thought with his eyes closed. Still, if he had heard correctly, Silver was conspiring with someone outside the group he had come with and that someone was, Sora was left to assume by the way he had referred to him, Balthier's father.

Balthier. He had to warn Balthier. Sora stood up and swiped some of the dust off his elbow before hurrying to the engine room.

* * *

 **A/N: So there's a slightly alternate story with Treasure Planet this time, though the core concepts are generally maintained such as Silver's ambivalent nature between his desires and relationship with Jim, which I thought fits pretty well with the overall theme of Paved With Gold, being figuring out the difference between freedom and subjugation. Now, we also have Balthier's relationship with his father to add in to the mix. Also, Wall-E was brought in simply because he's a cute little thing and I really love that movie. I'm also thinking of adding Morph as one of the group's new companions. He'd kind of be the Jiminy Cricket of the group except more useful.**

 **Also that Toy Story world sure is looking lovely for KH3. I wonder if we can finish this before that game comes out?**


	40. The Loot of a Thousand Worlds

Chapter 39

The Loot of a Thousand Worlds

The ship's engine room gurgled and gave a low growl as its various machines pumped life in the Brynhildr. At moment, Sora was more interested in the organic life present in the room.

"And we attach the couplings like so. And the world just became a little bit safer," Balthier muttered, connecting the two rotating shafts together.

"Hey, Balthier," Sora said. The sky pirate looked towards him and stood up from his crouched position on the ground. Fran was already standing, and folded her arms, staring at Sora with her reddish brown eyes. "I… wanted to hear it from you. The whole truth."

Balthier gave a small smile before walking towards him. "When knowledge fell into the hands of man, it was both a gift and a curse. A gift to those who could nurture it and put it to good use and a curse to those who became slaves to it. They were never satisfied and always wanted more. My father was the latter. Cidolfus Demen Bunansa, or Dr. Cid."

"Yeah, I've met a few people like that before," Sora said.

"And that pursuit of knowledge, that fixation on one thing, causes you to miss out on other things in your life. I just happened to be one of things he neglected. That part was true. Along the way, the old man became obsessed with a world of riches which could fund a lifetime's worth of research. Who wouldn't be tempted, I suppose. Either way, I couldn't stand it so I ran away. I fabricated a new identity for myself. I had long since dreamt of a past that I could be proud of. That I didn't hate. That why I fabricated a dying sister who dreamed of a dashing brother going on adventures. It wasn't so much to trick you as it was to trick myself. It gave me purpose in what I was doing. Validated an existence I previously thought inconsequential. I was finally living for someone, even if that person wasn't real. I fashioned myself as someone my imaginary sister could be proud of. Still, it looks like I couldn't escape the truth. I suppose it was inevitable that if I were to chase this Treasure Planet, that I and my father's paths would cross in some way again. I just didn't think it would be through my father's old business partner."

"You mean Silver? He called you young master when I was with him a while back. So you've known him since you were a kid?" Sora asked.

Balthier gave a single nod. "I'd say he and my father were more so acquaintances come to think of it. My father wouldn't want to be seen doing business with a pirate, but he did have him out and about scavenging things for him from time to time."

"Well, while I was on my way here, I heard him in the hold talking into a comms device with someone. I didn't hear their voice but when Silver mentioned that the person he was talking to's son was here, I knew it was your dad. Seems like they're working together," Sora told him.

"And the clamp tightens. We must act quickly if we are to take the treasure from Dr. Cid's hands," Fran said. She turned from Balthier and looked towards Sora. "Will you help us?"

"I…" Sora paused. The feelings of anger had passed now that he understood Balthier a little bit more. It was as Luna had said—he had lived a life of regrets. "I'll help. But I don't think you should run from your past anymore. It's as you said. Your paths would cross sooner or later. It's not like you had to go after Treasure Planet, but you did even knowing that your dad was going after it as well, and I think it's because there's still some longing for a resolution. So? Are you just going to let your feelings go unresolved?"

"He's right. Even if only for a while, the sky pirate must come home to roost," Fran said.

"Why do I feel like I'm being lectured?" Balthier asked. "Anyway, before we get to that, we have to deal with Silver firs-"

"Attention all passengers. We have found Treasure Planet. I repeat, we have found Treasure Planet. We will soon start our descent so please make your way to the upper deck as soon as possible. Thank you," Amelia's voice was heard through the ship's speakers.

Sora's eyes widened. "Already?"

"Hmm, I would have still thought we had a way to go," Balthier said. The three of them hurried from the engine room up to the top deck where they came face to face with a rather bare-looking planet illuminated by the green glow of one of the two rings around it.

Sora found Luna among the crowd of watchers and grinned. "How in the world of Kingdom Hearts did we get here so quickly?"

"She cheated," Sarah said, pointing at Luna.

"It wasn't cheating!" Luna defended. She guided Sora over to the middle of the deck where the sphere that had been in Jim's position had been sitting. A green holographic image of what seemed to be constellations and other things Sora had no idea about were sprouting out of the sphere itself. "I just kind got curious is all and I happened to summon my Keyblade and point it at the Treasure Planet on the map and a keyhole suddenly appeared in front of the ship and we ended up… here."

"As I said. Cheating," Sarah said.

"Bah, call it whatever you want. Who's gonna complain about a shortcut?" Hattie jumped in and glomped Luna. "That feeling when your lover's girlfriend is smarter than your older sister."

Sora looked at her as if she were insane. "Okay, just think about that sentence for a sec, and think about why it's so wrong on so many levels."

"Well, now that we found out this little secret, we might get back to our world even faster," Aya said.

"True. That there key that you used was pretty useful. Where did you get one?" John Silver enquired. Sora didn't know what it was about seeing others in a different light, but every time Silver spoke, he couldn't help but notice some kind of malevolent intent behind it. If it was his ears hearing what they wanted to hear or if it was more obvious because he was more aware, he wasn't sure.

Sora glared at him. "They're kind of special and most of us on this ship have one."

His and Silver's eyes met, oblivious to the other faces around them looking at them both in confusion.

"Well. That's a right shame, ain't it?" Silver rubbed at his chin slowly.

Before Sora could respond however he was dragged away by the collar by Balthier. Some distance away, he let go off Sora, the youth turning to see a vexed look on his face.

"You aren't very subtle, are you?" Balthier said with some chagrin.

"You're just gonna let him take the treasure?" Sora asked. "Why not just tie him up now and be done with it?"

"You have eyes, use them. He's a cyborg. You really think some rope is going to be enough to stop him?"

"Then what do we do? Just play along until it's too late?" Sora asked.

"There'll be a time and a place. We strike then but for now, we wait. We have no idea what kind of tricks he has up his sleeve after all," Balthier said. He seemed quite confident that he knew what he was doing and Sora had no reason to doubt him. He gave a firm nod and smiled before looking outside the ship.

The Brynhildr entered the atmosphere of the planet, descending through the cloud and emerging from such to see dense green forests on the ground but little much else. It was so devoid of life save for the flora that it seemed such a boring place to hide a treasure as grand as what they had been hearing about, but it was probably the distinct lack of unique traits that made the planet so suitable to stash treasure in the first place. Not that many people would have bothered to look in a place such as this. Not without the map anyway.

After a few minutes of searching for flat land, the airship finally landed and Sora followed an energetic Hattie who skipped onto land. "So how are we supposed to find the treasure? We're not gonna have to comb the entire world, are we?"

"That there'd have to be a damn fine-tooth comb, which we can't afford with our current numbers and time," Hattie replied. "Maybe the compass might give us an idea?"

"No good, I'm afraid," Balthier said. He stopped for a moment and stared at the compass in his hands. "It just seems to be… spinning."

Sure enough, as Sora checked in on the compass, he saw the pointer unable to make up its mind.

"Guess the thing's useless from here on out," he said.

"Well, we might not need it. I saw a temple on our way down here to the west. It's not too far from here," Jim said.

"Then that's where we're headed. Hattie, you don't mind if some of your group stay on the ship in case something happens, do they?" Balthier asked.

Hattie turned to address a group of thirteen nervous faces. Surprisingly, Hattie was quick to make up her mind and in the end decided that three of them were to accompany her along with her sisters while the other ten were to remain with the airship. As her classmates expressed how jealous they were for Avery, Antonin and Delita, or in the chosen few's case, how ecstatic they were to be coming along. Sora yawned and considered staying behind just to get some more sleep in. Then again, it wasn't every day that he got to see a stash of riches even if he wasn't actually interested in taking any of it. He could just imagine Scrooge McDuck hitting him on the head for even considering not going.

"We'll keep the ship in top shape so we can be in and out at a moment's notice," Captain Amelia said. She looked at Sora and smiled. "Do enjoy yourselves."

* * *

With no wind whatsoever, their journey was dry and unpleasant. Sora wiped away the beads of sweat on his face and looked to Luna who was tugging at the neckline of her dress. He hoped that this dubious Captain Flint was kind to them, even at the expense of the security of his own treasure. He figured his own wishes weren't exactly selfish because a pirate was typically selfish by nature anyway.

"So this Flint fellow spent how long coming up with such an elaborate way to hide the treasure?" Aya asked aloud.

"Probably not too long actually. He was one of the most feared pirates in the entire galaxy. What I'm more interested in is how he managed to smuggle so much treasure to this planet in such a small timeframe. Physically speaking, it's impossible," Dr. Doppler said.

"Well, Luna managed to get us her using her Keyblade. Is it possible the secret lies in the map then?" Vera suggested.

One of Hattie's classmates, a girl named Avery, appeared awestruck. "Oh! You don't think he had a Keyblade, do you?"

"Unless he came from our world, no," replied Vera.

"Ah, but what if he came to our world at some point, killed some guy and took his Keyblade off him? That could work, right?" asked another of their classmates, Travis.

"Well it certainly beats some of the more convoluted ideas in my head," Hattie replied.

As they kept walking through the forest, the planet that seemed so devoid of life suddenly didn't seem devoid anymore. Sora heard a clicking sound underneath his feet and he froze on the spot. Slowly, cautiously, his eyes fell on a round metallic object under his left shoes and hidden carefully beneath the grassy foliage.

Fran, who was next to him, had heard the click as well and looked towards him. She stretched out her hand towards him, probably a little too dramatically for his tastes.

"Don't move!"

Everyone turned at her voice and then towards Sora. The feelings of discomfort made him want to move even more.

Fran looked at the ground around her before settling on Sora's foot again. "A mine. I should think our dead pirate friend wouldn't make it so easy. Not if he wanted to keep the treasure hidden."

"So if he moves, he gets blown up?" Sarah asked. "But he can't blow up. He's the prosoragonist."

"Not helping, Sarah," Sora said. "How about instead of guessing how invincible I am, you think of a way to get me out of this mess."

Sarah smiled at him glumly. "Nope, it's hopeless. You're dead."

Sora looked at her wide-eyed. "Wow. Just wow."

"Unless our faithful prosoragonist realizes that the mine reacts based on his weight and lack thereof, and that the simple use of Gravity magic to keep it weighed down might just save his life, he is forever doomed," Sarah continued, dropping a wink at the end.

Sora grinned and shook his head. "This girl… alright. So who's going to be my savior today?"

"I wi-"

"Gravity!" Luna quickly cast over Hattie's squeal. Hattie let out a pout as a small field appeared on Sora's foot. The field was weak enough that he could pull his foot out with only some effort needed. Jumping back, he and everyone else moved as far back as they could before the field could disappear.

Ten seconds later, the gravity field disappeared and the mine exploded with a deafening boom. Grass but mainly dirt flew up in the air before promptly landing back on the ground. Sora tugged at his earlobe before glancing at where he had almost died.

Luna rushed forward and hugged him, placing her hands on his face. "Oh, I was about to have a heart attack for a moment there. Sarah, thank you so much for saving Sora's life."

"I couldn't lose my multiplayer pal," Sarah said looking away.

"We move slowly from here on out. Who can say which step we take may be our last if we don't," Balthier said.

Adhering to Balthier's wise words, the large group steadied themselves and continued on with wary eyes. Sora counted himself as lucky to find only one other mine which hadn't been in front of him but to his left. Others seemed to have more trouble given how they suddenly changed direction at times while some were luckier.

The path soon turned into a slope that led to an undergrowth. Sora was about to rub his eyes again when something suddenly jumped out and grabbed Jim's leg in front of him.

"Aaah! Get it off me! Get it off me!" Jim yelled as he danced around trying to fling the thing attached to his leg off him.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're back, Master! How long has it been since you left me here?" the 'thing', which Sora now identified as a robot, wailed as he held on for dear life. Jim stopped and grabbed the robot, pulling with all of his might. Eventually, he succeeded in separating the robot and helped it up for them all to see.

"Oh, you're not Master Flint. Back to sleep I go. I mean solitude's fine, don't get me wrong but I- I just WANT TO BE LOVED FOR ONCE, I mean is that so much to ask?" the robot looked towards Sarah. "I MEAN IS IT?"

"This thing is annoying. Can I destroy it?" Sarah asked.

"Wait, you said your master was Captain Flint?" Jim asked.

"Yeah. What a guy… such temper. You-you know I think he had mood swings, personally but I'm not psychiatrist. Oh, where are my manners! The name's… the name's… B-B-B-B.E.N.? B.E.N.! Yeah, Bio Electronic Navigator. I'm especially good at navigation… and erm, bioelectronics?"

"You know where he hid the treasure?" Jim asked.

"HA! Know it? I… I… huh… where did he hide the treasure?" B.E.N. asked himself.

Vera let out an exasperated sigh. "We've a better chance of actually finding it ourselves than waiting for him to remember at this rate."

"Wait, wait, wait! Why do they never wait? Okay, so it's a little fuzzy. There was treasure! L-lots of treasure, buried in the centroid- centroid- centroid of the mechanism. And a door or gate to get there, though it didn't always lead to the same place! Captain Flint wanted to make sure… nobody could find the treasure… so he… to me… and I… Aah! Data inaccessible! Reboot required!"

"Woah, is he okay?" Luna asked as Ben seemed to shut down completely. She reached out and waved at him but he didn't respond.

"Fastest character introduction and death ever," Sarah said.

Suddenly, B.E.N.'s eyes lit up again and he spun around. "Wowowowow! Sorry, who are you guys? My name is… uhm… it's…"

"NOOOOO! He's back again!" Sarah cried out in exaggerated horror.

"Oh, did I say something wrong? Now I long for YESTERDAY! Sorry, I don't know where that came from. I'm just losing myself- losing myself- losing myself…"

"So this has been a gigantic waste of time," said Avery.

"Not so. You didn't hear what he said?" Balthier asked.

"Well I heard things, I'm sure, but they were a whole lot of nothings rather than somethings," replied another classmate of Hattie's. Hattie herself disagreed with a prompt nod.

"Nope, I heard it. In 'the centroid of the mechanism'," she repeated.

"Mechanism?" Sora asked.

"Right. Because this world isn't actually a world. It's a shell, probably created either by Flint himself or, perhaps more likely, someone else such as a group or advanced civilization. The treasure itself… well, the compass points to it. It's always pointed to it because we're standing right on top of it," Balthier said. As if all on the same wavelength, everyone looked at the ground as they considered his words.

"The treasure's at the center?" Luna asked before turning to B.E.N. "Is that right, B.E.N.?"

"Time to get digging then. Good thing I brought shovels!" Dr. Doppler said, holding two shovels that he had brought along with him.

"I'm not so sure it's a good idea to dig all the way to the center of the planet," Luna said. "He mentioned a door as well that didn't always lead to the same place. You think that door's our way in to the center?"

"It has to be! But how to get to it…" Jim said. He found himself staring at the sphere in his hand. Like a puzzle, he did a few intricate twists and rotations on the sphere, expecting the holographic map to show itself again. Instead, the map quickly disappeared, revealing a green light akin to ring that circled the planet. It travelled through the woods and kept on going beyond what Sora could see.

"Whew boy, now there's a light show," B.E.N. remarked. "That might… no, that will definitely take us to that door. I think."

"Well done, Jimbo, m'lad. I always knew you had it in ye," Silver said, wrapping his arm around a smiling Jim. Sora exchanged a quick look with Balthier who nodded. If there was ever a time to intervene, it was now.

"Silver-" as Sora was about to call him out, the wind, where there was none before, suddenly picked up. Everyone looked up as a shadow was cast on them to see a ship hovering above them. When it landed, Balthier moved for his pistol only to find a gun pointed at his head. The gun in question came from Silver's cybernetic hand.

"Pulling a gun on your own father? Just how many filthy habits have you picked up while you were away?"

A man who looked an older Balthier with glasses stepped out of the ship and flashed Balthier a look of contempt.

"You mean pulling a gun on a man who became obsessed and was swallowed by his petty desires? Any day," Balthier said.

"Then what is it, I ask, that brings you here, if not for the same desire as my own?" Dr. Cid asked. He laughed and looked at Silver. "Oh come now, we're all civilized here. Put the gun away."

"Silver? What's happening here?" Jim asked.

"They've been in collusion with each other. I heard him talking with Balthier's father on the ship," Sora said.

"Ah, so you heard then, did ye?" Silver replied. "Then why didn't ye act sooner?"

"Because I told him not too," Balthier replied.

In the middle of this, Luna walked over to Sora and asked in a low voice, "Wait, Balthier's father?"

"I'll fill you in later," Sora whispered back.

Dr. Cid paced back and forward for a moment before stopping and looking at Balthier once again. "You know, I've just realized. You and I are nought but a pack of strays. We've never been part of the pack. I suppose there really is more of me in you than I'd originally thought. I truly am glad I got to meet you again Ffamran, on the eve of my ascension into the pages of history. And you and your ilk are no longer needed."

"And what's stopping us from ending you here and now? There are more of us," Hattie cut in.

"Oh, too right you are! And I brought along just the thing to rectify it, or I should say, he did." Dr. Cid pointed towards Silver. He held out a remote and showed it to him. "Now I wonder what this red button does right here? Would you care to find out?"

Balthier stepped forward and sneered. "What did you do?"

"Ah yes, the treasure you may obtain but with no way of leaving, you'll die wondering what could have been with all the riches you had. See what I mean?" Cid asked.

"I see. I thought it was strange that you came alone and now I see why. You rigged our ship to blow, didn't you?" Balthier said.

"Are you asking or is it a demonstration?" Dr Cid said with a smile. His eyes wandered before finding the map in Jim's hands. "There's the beauty, and I see you've managed to get it open for me."

Silver looked at Jim sadly before holding out his hands. "Don't be a fool, Jimbo. Hand it over."

Jim looked at Balthier before holding out the sphere to Silver. Suddenly he brought back his hand, the green light showing the way disappearing as he did so.

"What did you do?" Silver asked, looking back and forth in surprise.

"You want the treasure, fine. But I'm the only one who knows how to open it, and you certainly don't have the time to figure it out," Jim said. Silver growled at him but retreated upon hearing Dr. Cid's laughter.

"So we're at an impasse then. Let them tag along. They will soon see the very reason that brought them here swiped from beneath their feet. You go first," Dr. Cid said. Silver reached out and placed and arm on Jim's shoulder only for it to be swatted away.

"Don't touch me. I trusted you," Jim muttered coldly. As he walked off, Silver stared at his back with some remorse in his eyes.

* * *

With Jim leading the way, Sora felt the current situation out of his hands. All he could do was follow for now. He didn't even blame Balthier for telling him to wait until they moment they had. They couldn't have foreseen Balthier's father's appearance at that point. For now, they were dancing to his tune.

The green light they were following soon came to an abrupt stop at the end of a cliff. Dr. Cid pushed past Jim and looked on annoyed before turning to Jim.

"Well, where is it?"

"It has to be here," Jim muttered, looking to B.E.N. for help.

"You know, I'm pretty sure it was somewhere around he- OW!" B.E.N. tripped as he was walking around and fell. "Hey, who put that sphere-shaped recess there?"

Jim crouched low and looked to B.E.N.'s feet where the recess was that he had tripped. He gave the sphere in his hands a single look and shoved it in place. The sphere fit perfectly, revealing the map once more to them. In front of them, a gate opened up to the far reaches of the galaxy.

"Woah… this is it. The door…" Aya said in awe. Jim traced his middle finger around the rim of the holographic before touching one of the stars. The image in the gate changed to something else, heavy rain smashing drown on the surface. Another star that he touched showed somewhere entirely different, a colony living on a moon.

"That's how he did it. The loot of a thousand worlds. It would be easy to acquire something like that when you can access entire worlds at the touch of a finger," Vera murmured. She turned to Hattie in thought. "The ultimate mode of transportation. A key to the universe. Hattie…"

"I know," Hattie replied.

"None of that matters. Where's the treasure?" Silver yelled impatiently.

"Probably in the centroid of the mechanism. So like this?" Jim found the star in the center of the holograph and touched it. The gate rippled like drops of water joining a bigger volume until they could see some strange machines in front of them.

Silver and Dr. Cid were the first in, and when Sora joined them and his other companions his eyes beheld a world teeming with gold, so much gold that he wouldn't have known what to do with it even if he had wanted the treasure in the first place.

Suddenly, his Keyblade appeared in his hand and Yuna, Rikku and Paine shot out of the Keyblade with gleeful (with the exception of Paine) looks on their faces.

"Treasure! Trejjies, Trejjies everywhere, tra-la la la-la," Rikku yelled before flying straight into the treasure.

"You should have told us you were coming here. Just be honest. You wanted to keep all of the treasure for yourself, huh?" Yuna said.

"Huh? Who said you could suddenly come out like that? You can do that?" Sora asked.

"Of course. We just had no reason to. Until now," Paine said. Sora crossed his arms and watched the Gullwings bathed and swam in gold.

He looked around for a moment before noticing a small ship not too far from them. It wouldn't have been eye-catching to most people, what with all the riches around them, but to him it was the thing that stood out the most because it didn't feel like it belonged.

He nudged Luna lightly on the arm and pointed to it. "Hey, let's check that out."

Luna nodded and they quietly made their way over to the ship. The ground seemed to crunch underneath their feet like autumn leaves except that it was actually coins behind it. That alone still baffled them.

They arrived on board the small ship and Sora took out his PHS, holding it up to his mouth.

"Want a picture taken?" he asked.

"Oh, yes! Make me look _faaabulous_ , darling," Luna said, posing by the railing.

Sora grinned and quickly took the shot before showing her. "Well in my opinion, I think you're the best treasure in this photo."

"Are you calling me a possession, Sora?" Luna asked.

"I give up. I'm never complimenting a girl again," Sora said. He looked to his left, his smile disappearing as he gazed at a skeleton resting against the mast. "How cheerful."

"Is this… Flint?" Luna asked. She watched with a grimace as Sora walked over and crouched down to inspect the skeleton. "How can you stand being near that thing?"

"Not my first encounter with a skeleton," Sora said. "So he's been here this whole time?"

"Seems like it. He didn't just collect treasure. He was obsessed with it, even to the point where it started to control him. He probably didn't trust anyone to keep his treasure safe. He didn't trust anyone in general," Luna theorized.

"Was it worth it in the end, captain? Chasing your dreams, and in the end it all amounted to nothing," Sora murmured, tipping the skeleton's pirate hat downward.

"Is it funny that now more than ever I'm ready to go back to our world to fight for it?" Luna asked.

"No. I am too," Sora replied. He was about to stand up when he noticed something within Flint's enclosed hand. He pried the processing chip from Flint's hands and showed it to Luna.

"Hmm, doesn't it look like something that would in the gap in B.E.N.'s head?" Luna asked.

"You think so?"

Luna placed a finger on her cheek. "Not entirely positive but I think I caught something about Flint doing something to him just before he had to reboot. What if this has something to do with his memories?"

"Only one way to find out," Sora said. As they went back to join the others, a bigger commotion was brewing between Balthier and his father.

"It is even more beautiful than I had imagined. Ah, the seeds of my research bear fruit at last. A land laden with riches. You see this Ffamran. With this, Ivalice will prosper the world over." Dr. Cid stretched out his hands, seeming to revel in his own avarice. He scooped up a handful of coins in his hand and showed them to Balthier. "Do you have any idea how much just this is worth to the hungry mouths that wish to live among kings? This alone?"

"You know as well as I do where all this will end up if it gets into your hands. Ivalice's problems run much deeper than what you can see with eyes alone. Riches won't solve the problem. It'll only serve to expose rifts long since ignored, and by the same people you serve no less," Balthier said. "And there's one more thing you're mistaken about. I didn't become a sky pirate simply to hunt for treasure. I did to it to run away. That means that whatever happens here, whether I leave with treasure or none at all, isn't my concern. This was all for the fun of it. I have nothing to lose."

Meanwhile, Sora and Luna arrived at Jim and B.E.N. and showed the robot the processing chip they had found. Luna peered over him and checked his head before beaming.

"Yup. The wires connect perfectly. See?"

"So he'll remember everything with this then?" Jim asked. As Sora lined up the wires corresponding to each other, the wires seemed to snap to together by themselves. Sora quickly pulled his hands away as the chip inserted itself into B.E.N. and the lime in his lenses turned a pale blue.

"Oh, I remember! I remember everything now! You guys are such pals, you know that? It's just unfortunate I didn't remember in time to warn you guys about the booby-trap Captain Flint set in place!" B.E.N. shouted with his hands on his head. Just then the ground shook underneath them. Yuna, Rikku and Paine emerged from the gold with looks of confusion on their faces and everyone stopped what they were doing with nervous stares all around.

Suddenly someone jumped. It was Aya. "Something just slithered past my foot!"

"Just don't… move-" Fran was about to warn when a giant Abyss Worm emerged from the surface and swallowed Dr. Cid whole in doing so. Vera was quick to summon her Keyblade and cast several rounds of Thundaga in quick succession. The worm sunk back into the surface, producing a fountain of coins as it did so.

"You're with us, yes?" Vera asked, looking from Aya all the way to Sora.

"Of course," Sora said, summoning his Keyblade. He looked to Balthier who was staring at the spot his father had just been. "Balthier, it might not be easy right now but we need you."

"No, it's not that. It just… feels anti-climactic is all," Balthier said. He pulled out his pistol and cocked it. "Anyone, let's see this through."

The Abyss Worm soon jumped out of the ground again and began circling around the circumference of the mini planet. Hattie nodded to her two sisters before splitting off. As the worm came towards her, Hattie cast Magnega. With some of the coins attached to it, the Abyss Worm was lifted into the air. Sora ran forward and began Sonic Blading through the air, striking its body seven times.

As Sora flew away from the Abyss Worm, Luna and Aya moved in, synchronously strike raiding to keep the creature in the air. Sarah positioned herself underneath and cast Megaflare. A giant explosion lit up the sky and Sarah stumbled out of the way as the Abyss Worm fell from the sky.

"It's still not down?" Aya asked, watching as it wiggled around before burying itself into the ground again. Sora watched as the ground began to shift and coins and jewels fell off the planet. His head turned abruptly as the Abyss Worm erupted from the surface and entrapped Avery's left arm in its mouth. Avery let out an ear-piercing scream and tried to pull her hand out which seemed to only irritate the Abyss Worm more. Luna quickly sprung forward and cut upwards at the worm's stomach, forcing it to separate from Avery's now gashing arm.

"Thank you," Avery whispered after Luna cast Curaga on her. Luna looked down and noticed something in Avery's left hand. Her eyes widened and she quickly snatched the coins from Avery's hand. She held the coins up in her hand and waited for a moment, then dodge rolled out of the way just as the Abyss Worm came in to attack her.

"It's after the coins!" she exclaimed, throwing them to the floor.

"That explains Dr. Cid. He grabbed a handful before leaving us," Fran said.

Hattie looked at Avery before glaring at the worm. "Hurt my friends, will you? Let's hit this insect with everything you've got. Avery, get some rest."

"No. I can fight," Avery replied quickly, though that she was holding her left arm seemed to indicate otherwise. Though the bleeding had stopped from Luna's magic, a purple bruise still remained.

"You sure?" asked Delita with Antonin looking over his shoulder. Avery nodded and primed herself for whatever was in store.

"CHARGE!" Hattie yelled. It was like she had unleashed a declaration of war on a single creature. Arrows, bullets and magic flew and smacked against the Abyss Worm all at once. As it travelled towards them, Sora transformed his Keyblade into a cannon and fired an Ultima shot. A giant ball of light shot out of the cannon and smashed into the Abyss Worm, knocking it back but not taking it out completely. As it tried to bury deep into the ground again, Hattie kept it up with Magnega.

"Fran, your quickening!" Balthier yelled across the room to her. Fran nodded and sheathed her bow before raising one hand at a time. Two giant shards of ice rose out from the ground one after the other, trapping the Abyss Worm in between. She then blew across the palm of her hand.

"Break!"

The ice shattered into small pieces, seeming to deal a hefty amount of damage as it landed to the floor. Balthier followed up by holding out his arms, creating an alchemical circle beneath the worm. He brought his hand up in the shape of a gun and held it to his forehead, summoning a meteor that completely crashed straight down on the meteor.

"Woah… you guys were hiding _that_ all along?" Sora asked with a massive grin.

"Unlike you, we don't need to show off to be cool," Balthier said, swiping at his arms.

"HEY!" Sora exclaimed in mock offence.

 _SMASH!_

Suddenly the Abyss Worm rose up from what they had been sure was certain death, flinging its head from side to side wildly.

"You've got to be kidding me. How? Why?" Jim asked.

"Oh, I think it's because we're surrounded by coins. Yeah, we're surrounded by coins. Did I mention it gets its strength from being near treasure?"

"NO!" Everyone yelled at B.E.N.

"We're surrounded by treasure. Does that mean we can't beat this thing?" Avery asked.

From afar, John Silver watched the group with dubious eyes. They finally rested on Jim and his features softened. His hands soon found themselves in his coat and before he knew what he was doing, he was running towards them.

"Don't give up hope yet. There be a way still," Silver yelled, producing a small package from his coat.

Dr. Doppler suddenly crouched low in fear. "A Procyon bomb?!"

Silver laughed. "This was actually meant for your ship but I suppose it must've slipped me mind."

"So you've had it with you all this time?" Balthier asked.

"I was getting a little worried when your father brought it up. Oh, Jimbo, could you be a good boy and get the remote for me? We'll only have one shot at this, you know," Silver said.

Jim ran towards the remote control that had been left behind by Dr. Cid and picked it up. Silver grabbed a handful of treasure with his organic hand and held it out to the Abyss Worm.

"Here, _beastie-beastie_ ," he taunted. As if treated to the meal of a lifetime by its master, the worm took the bait and lunged for Silver. Just before it reached him, Silver activated the bomb in his cyborg hand and switched hands so the Abyss Worm gnawed on that hand instead. "Detonate it, Jim!"

"But what about you?" Jim asked.

"Please, a good pirate doesn't die that easy," Silver said.

Balthier looked to Jim and placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's true."

Jim nodded and gave one last look at Silver before pressing the red button. A bright light filled the room followed by a raucous sound like thunder. Sora had to cover his face as some of the treasure flew across the room. When he looked back, the Abyss Worm had completely gone and Silver was standing with only one arm left to spare.

"I'd say that bomb came in handy. Heh, get it?" Sarah joked. Sora wasn't sure that was an entirely appropriate joke at the moment, but Silver had no qualms in laughing at it.

"You're a lucky man, Silver," Hattie said. As the world tremored again. She let out a groan. "Is it another one?"

"Not this time. The core's breaking apart and the planet's sure to be next. We need to get out, now!" Balthier yelled.

"But how? It'll take too long to get back to the ship," Luna said. Sora was about to look at the entrance when he spotted the small ship where the dead Flint was.

"Think that'll work?" Sora asked.

"Only one way to find out," Balthier said.

As the group headed towards the ship that was sliding down to them, Silver stayed on the spot, looking at all the treasure around him. He reached for some of the coins only for the ground to crack and split in between his legs.

"Silver, come on!" Sora yelled, noticing Silver's absence.

"AAAAAARGH!" Silver let out a frustrated growl before running for the ship as well. Reaching the ship, Jim grabbed hold of the mast and waited for everyone to board before stepping on the gas.

"You know how to fly this thing?" Sora asked.

"Err, it's like solar surfing, I think. Hold on tight!" Jim said, weaving through spurting fountains of gold and exiting by the gate. Vera quickly cast Magnet, catching the sphere in the recess.

Just like Balthier had said, the ground of the planet itself splintered and caved in. Up ahead they could see the Brynhildr flying in the distance. Jim managed to catch up with the ship and jumped off along with the others onto it, the smaller ship losing height and falling below them.

"Well, that was quite an entrance, kupo," said Kupopo.

"Not done yet. Where are we headed? Just pick anywhere," Vera said, setting the sphere still showing the holographic image on the ground.

"Um… Montressor Spaceport on Crescentia," Jim said, pointing to one of the stars. The tip of Vera's Keyblade grabbed the star and she threw to her left, expanding it into a keyhole in front of the ship.

"Heh. A'ight, captain, sail her straight and true!" Hattie yelled to Captain Amelia who was at the helm.

"Aye aye! Let's get off this godforsaken cowp of land," Amelia grinned, sailing them straight through.

* * *

 ** _Montressor Spaceport Medical Centre, Crescentia_**

"So you're off already, are you?" Silver asked as he fitted with right shoulder with a new cyborg arm. He looked to Balthier and closed his eyes. "I'm sorry about your father."

"Don't be. In my eyes, he had died a long time ago. Still, not even I would have wished something like that on him," Balthier said. He looked towards Sora for a moment before speaking again. "You know, I always wondered what it was that made me what I am today. It's because of you, isn't it? Whenever you came around to help my father with his work, you were the one that lifted me up when Dr. Cid was too preoccupied with his work to play with me. The stories you told me about your adventures... deep down, they must've inspired me. Set me free, they did."

Silver chuckled. "Well, I think I'm becoming a role model for one too many people right now. Jim feels the same way. I think it would be best if I… stay out the both of yer lives for now. Disappear. I'm a pirate. Not exactly the most positive role model to be following."

"Oh, you misunderstand. I never said I wanted to be like you. Only that you inspired me," Balthier corrected.

"Ah ha ha, well I appreciate the honesty," Silver said. "So what awaits the both of yas next? Give me the juicy deets."

"For me? Well, Fran was saying something on our way here about how she too was done running and that she would return to her village to settle things. I intend to fully see things through with her, of course," Balthier said. Sora took that to mean that they were splitting up, which was fair, he supposed. It was selfish to ask of Balthier and Fran to stick with them when they had other things they wanted to do, but it would feel strange without them.

"And Luna and I are going to keep going down the road we've been travelling for a while now. Now that I think about it, I'm sure she wants to see her aunt again after so long. We'll probably check up on her next," Sora said.

"Give Luna and Fran my regards. Oh, before I forget, Sora…" Silver reached into his coat again. For whatever reason, Sora was expecting another bomb, so he exhaled a small smile of relief upon seeing a strange polymorphic figure instead. "His name's Morph. I want you to keep him safe for me."

"Me?" Sora asked.

"Don't worry. He's not hard to take care off. He can be a bit mischievous though so don't be afraid to tell him off when he goes too far," Silver said. He raised Morph up to eye level. "You'll watch out for him and Luna, won't you, Morphy?"

Morph smiled and bounced out of Silver's hand, Sora having to reach out to catch him. He looked back up as Silver opened the door to the hallway.

"Well, time to say goodbye to Jim and then I'm off. Wouldn't want to be taken in for questioning now, would I?" Silver said.

When the door closed behind him, Sora turned to Balthier. "Don't tell me he's still going after treasure? He didn't learn last time?"

"Well, you know what they say. Old habits die hard. Let's join the others," Balthier said.

Back at the spaceport, Sora separated from Balthier and soon found Luna chatting with Hattie and Aya on the Brynhildr.

"Hattie!" Sora called out as he neared them. "No treasure, huh? It's too bad. Hopefully that doesn't mean you're going to be breaking your promise though. We still need your help. We make a great team, you know."

"Ah, treasure shmeasure. We found something better, anyway," Hattie said. She held up the sphere containing the map in her hands. "A sphere that can take you almost anywhere in the universe? That's the best treasure of all. Heck, we might just leave you guys right now and go elsewhere."

"Hattie…" Luna said.

"Hehe, just kidding. I'm not about to abandon my own world while it's still in peril. Plus I wouldn't mind a few plots of land for ourselves in Radiant Garden either," Hattie said. She walked over to him and enthusiastically put forward her hand. "Let's put an end to this war, shall we?"

* * *

 ** _Somewhere far away…_**

Xion knocked the daggers aside from the masked man's hand and lunged forward to strike with her katana. With no weapon to guard with, Nil raised his arms to guard, but Xion jumped and delivered an overhead strike.

"You're finished!" Xion yelled, poising herself to strike again as Nil's mask began to crack. Nil held up his and summoned a corridor of darkness, but Xion was quicker and slide dashed in to slam Nil to the wall with her forearm digging into his neck. She was about to plunge her katana straight in when she froze on the spot. Her face went pale and she backed away as she looked upon Nil's face.

"No..." Xion said, shaking her head in denial. "You can't be here. How?"

Nil, now free from her gasp, let out a harsh cough, clutching his chest as he did so. Without saying anything, he walked past her and disappeared into the corridor of darkness. It rested there for a good few seconds after in which Xion could have easily followed him through if she had wanted. The thought never came to her mind however.

Instead she fell to her knees and stabbed her katana into the grass. She leaned her head against the handle as tears fell from her eyes.

"Roxas… how…?"

* * *

 **A/N: So the fight scene for this was definitely inspired by the dungeons and raids in FFXIV and I'm sure there'll be a few more along the way so props up to FFXIV, go play it, you won't regret it and the community is fantastic. Also Balthier and Fran's "Quickenings" or limits are referring to Element of Treachery and Shatterheart respectively, which you've probably already seen if you've brought FF12: The Zodiac Age. You can get that too btw. It's one of the more criminally underrated Final Fantasy games next to FFV and is an absolute treat to play. Am I a sellout yet?**


	41. Thorns in a Rose Garden

Chapter 40

Thorns in a Rose Garden

 ** _Beach Park, Kauai_**

Sadness wracked at Aqua's heart as she sat on the shores of the Hawaiian beach, staring at the exotic blue sea before her. She brought her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them tightly, burying her mouth into the fabric.

"I'm so lost…" Aqua muttered. She left her blank stare adrift at sea as she felt a small creature snuggle up against her. She smiled at Stitch. It was like he knew exactly what she needed right now.

"Sorry. I'm just not really feeling good right now. Ven and Terra tell me not to worry but… I've used the Keyblade ever since I was first taken in by Master Eraqus. Now when I need it most, I can't use it. I can't feel the connection anymore. I can no longer… wield the Keyblade," Aqua said. She closed her eyes only to open them not too soon afterwards. All she could see in her head was that masked boy, Nil, and the joy in his voice after shattering her Keyblade with that seven-branched sword.

Aqua had run the fight through her head over and over again, of course. She had gotten her careless and overconfident, something rather uncharacteristic of her. And now she needed some time alone to figure things out. What better a place then than with a dear friend she had made along her journey?

"You know, something about this is really nagging at me," Lea said behind her. She wouldn't have been able to come here without the help of someone who could open corridors. He scratched the back of his neck and looked towards the sea. "Is this really how you want this to end? You satisfied with this?"

"Of course not… but what else can I do? Without the Keyblade I'm-"

"Useless?" Aqua looked up from her hands in surprise and turned her body to look at him. "You think just because you don't have a Keyblade, you've failed? That your pain is somehow worse than those who've never had one to begin with?"

"I never said that," Aqua said.

"Then stop moping already! You lost the Keyblade, big whoop. Does that make anything you did before that of any less value? If it is, it's only because you're refusing to do anything now. You're prolonging your own despair," Lea said. "Man, I can't believe I'm having to lecture a Keyblade Master of all people. What's the world coming to, huh? Well… I know I certainly have more important things to be doing than consoling a sulking child who's lost her toy."

"You don't have to put it like that," Aqua said.

"Sorry. I'm not good with children," Lea teased.

"Oh, you're an ass," Aqua said only for Lea to laugh.

"You've got that memorized. Also I wouldn't say such things in front of your pal there. Wouldn't want him to pick up the wrong lingo, if you catch my drift."

Aqua covered her mouth. "Oops. Sorry, Stitch. Don't tell Lilo or Nani, okay?"

"Ha, ha, the way you're acting all flustered. It's kinda cute," Lea said.

"I don't need to hear that from you," Aqua shot back.

"Compliments aren't usually meant for shooting down. Anyway, I didn't just come here to be your taxi, you know. Yen Sid and Neuge asked to me to recruit more members and I just happen to know a few hands that could help. I'm not particularly happy about seeing this one again though. I hoped our last meeting would be just that."

"They're somewhere around here?" Aqua asked.

"Yeah, but you focus on you and I'll focus on…" Lea looked over to the other side of the beach, having spotted the sitar-wielding weirdo in his shorts. "…him."

* * *

 ** _Mountain Trail, Alexander_**

"There it is," Luna said after reaching the end of the gorge. After travelling through the narrow passage between mountains, Luna stopped to gaze upon the tall spires of her hometown waiting just beyond the hilltop. She turned around to look at Sora, Aya, Balthier, Fran and Kupopo. "Well, it's been fun, guys."

"Yeah, it was fun," Sora said.

Luna rolled her eyes and walked forward, dragging Sora with her by the ear. "Nice try but you're coming too."

"Wouldn't have it any other way," a wincing Sora said through gritted teeth. He looked towards Aya and smiled as she laughed. After having convinced them while on their way to Treasure Planet, Aya would be parting with them for a while to find the Lunarians with Hattie and her group.

"You sure you guys don't want to come along?" Aya asked.

"Nah, we've delayed enough as it is. I say that when we're off visiting Luna's aunt instead, but yeah. Besides, once we've done everything we'll meet you and Hattie in Quartz Town," Sora said.

"And that's when it begins, right. We'll do our part although I can't imagine it'll be too hard to convince the Lunarians to launch an offensive against Horus," Aya said.

"Well if they've heard the same stories about me that the other factions have they'd probably think twice," Sora said laughing. Being labelled as the bringer of ruin wasn't exactly anything to laugh about but he felt the situation warranted some light-heartedness.

"Well they'll have to go through me and Hattie's gang first. We're kind of like your representatives, eh?" Aya said.

"Well, as long as you don't misrepresent me, I leave it in your capable hands," Sora said. He looked over to Balthier and Fran. "Don't be strangers, you two. I expect a postcard or something every month."

"I was never too fond of postcards. I've always felt you have to see it to believe it," Balthier said.

"You'll see us again. If you can catch us," Fran added.

"Is that a challenge?" Luna asked with a grin.

"It's an invitation," Balthier said. He took the locket from around his neck off and threw it to Luna. "Think of it as motivation."

"Oh yeah, that locket… just where did you get that from anyway?" Sora asked.

"Open it," Balthier said. He looked over Luna's shoulder as she did as Balthier had instructed to see three faces looking back at them. On the left was a woman they didn't recognize, to the right of that a younger looking Doctor Cid and in the middle a young Balthier. They all seemed happy, a far cry from the relationship they knew of Balthier and his father today. Sora looked up to see Balthier and Fran already taking off.

"Well… see you guys soon, okay?" Aya waved before running off after Balthier and Fran.

"And then there were three," Luna muttered as they began heading down the mountain.

"Well… four. It always happens with the smallest," Sora said, pointing to his hood where Morph was lying.

"Well I, for one, am glad, kupo. I couldn't stand another moment of Sarah pinching my cheeks. I am not a plaything for her amusement!" Kupopo ranted.

"Can't you play along, even for just a moment? Besides, she's giving you more attention than either of us. Why wouldn't you appreciate that?" Sora asked.

"That's not true! Luna, you care for Kupopo, don't you?"

Luna put her hands behind her head and looked off to the side. "Um…"

"Luna!"

"I kid! I kid! You know you're my little Moogle," Luna said with a grin, grabbing him and holding him to her chest. "You know, it's not just Aunt Kit. I can't wait to see how Celes and Eleftheria are doing."

"Yeah, and maybe we can even visit King Cecil and Queen Rosa too," Sora said. The smile from his face faded as the city came into view and he held out his hand to stop Luna. Standing at the toll booths leading into the city were two men clad from head to shoulder in armor, their faces being the only thing Sora and Luna could see.

"Keyblade wielders? Here?" Luna asked. "Should we find another way in?"

"No. This is exactly what our new friend is for," Sora said, reaching into his hood. He took out a smiling Morph in his hand. "Think you can create a distraction for us?"

"Distraction? Distraction?" Morph squealed before flying off. Arriving at the toll booth, Morph sneaked up behind one of the Keyblade wielders and turned into a vuvuzela before blowing out an incredibly annoying sound that caused the both of them to jump.

"The heck is going on?" one of them yelled with his hands on his ears. Morph laughed, transforming this time into a whipped cream pie and flying straight into face of the person who just spoke.

The pie-less Keyblade wielder lifted a finger and took of sample of the cream from the other's face to taste. "Huh. Not bad."

"Dude, stop eating me and do something about whatever it is that's doing this!" yelled the creamed knight.

As Morph evaded their flailing arms and transformed into various things to distract them, Sora and Luna slipped past them and ran through the toll booths. Sora turned around and motioned for Morph to come back. Morph nodded and transformed into a bucket of water, hovering above both their heads and dousing them both following after his friends.

"What in the world is going on?" Luna asked as they turned into a street and stopped for a breather.

"I don't want to make assumptions, but what if it's another Radiant Garden scenario?" Sora suggested.

"You mean it's been invaded?" Luna looked to the ground and closed her eyes. Soon enough, she opened them again. "Aunt Kit. I have to see if she's okay!"

"Right. Let's go," Sora said.

It had come as an unexpected development for them. Perhaps it had been naïve to expect their troubles not to follow them if only for the while, but now that they had, Sora wasn't too sure he would be leaving Alexander without being swept into some sort of conflict.

As they stepped into the main street, they came across more and more of the residents. Their behavior seemed cautious and meticulous, as if they feared that a wrong step could be their last. The atmosphere was anything but normal, and the more people Sora took notice of, the angrier he grew.

Luna suddenly grabbed Sora's hand and nudged her head in the direction of a few more armored soldiers walking towards them.

"Come on," she said, turning him left onto another street. As they kept walking, Sora's eyes caught sight of a poster on the walls. A wanted poster with his face on it. Just like in Radiant Garden. Now he was really glad his mom had asked him to get a haircut back on the islands.

Luna was about to turn another street when she saw more armored figures walking towards them and instead just continued straight.

After navigating a few blocks, they soon arrived at Kit's Bakery. Luna quickly peered through the glass squares in the door and with a satisfied nod to Sora she opened it.

"I'm home, Aunt Kit!"

The red-haired woman behind the counter smiled at Luna and ran over, pulling her into a hug. "Oh, I'm so glad you're alright! Why didn't you drop by sooner? You're torturing me by not dropping in every once in a while."

"I'm sorry for not bringing her back sooner. We've just had a lot of stuff to take care of and a lot of diversions along the way," Sora said.

Kit looked at him and smiled. "I don't doubt it. It's funny. You've chosen a rather precarious time to come back. It's not safe out there anymore."

"Yeah, we were wondering about that. What's going on here?" Sora asked.

"They came about four months ago. We were all living our quaint little lives and then the next thing we knew, they were everywhere. No explanation offered. In a single night, they managed to cripple the police force. They don't harm us though. At least, not if you don't get on their bad side. I've never seen it myself but I've heard stories from customers having witnessed others spitting at them or verbally abusing them, only to be taken off to the side and beaten, and that's if they felt like being generous. A few of them will outright shame you in front of others to get the point across. It's just easier not to talk or look at them, but it's created such a negative atmosphere and ooh, I just can't stand it! This isn't the Alexander I grew in and it's not the one Kaylah and Ronan would have wanted for you, Luna."

"It's terrible. How do people like that even have the right to wield a Keyblade?" Luna asked.

"The Keyblade wasn't intended to protect the light in the first place, but conquer it instead. It wouldn't be a stretch to say it ended up in some pretty churlish hands," Sora said. "Have Rosa and Cecil said anything about it?"

"Queen Rosa? No, we haven't heard much from the castle since the invasion. What if they've taken them hostage?" Kit asked.

"We won't let them," Luna said. She gave Sora a determined look. "I won't leave this city until they're gone."

"Then our battle starts here," Sora said.

Aunt Kit stared at them wide-eyed and then shook her head. "I'm sorry, what? No one's fighting anyone! Luna, I care for you too much to see you get hurt or worse."

"But you said it yourself! This isn't the city mom and dad would have wanted for me. I may not live here anymore, but I want what's best for it. I promised myself I was going to live up to their expectations and I won't let them down. I'll take this city back. Not just for them but for you and myself as well," Luna said.

"Luna… well you've certainly got your tenacity going for you," Kit said. "Alright, but just come back safe, you two. I don't want to have to go to the funeral of another person I love. I'm not even sure I could handle it."

"Well, while you're waiting…" Sora took out his PHS and located the photo apps on the phone before handing it over to Kit. "This should tide you over until we return. Luna wanted us to take a lot of photos of the places we've been so we could show you."

"I mean, some of them are pretty embarrassing but I wanted to show you that I'm having plenty of fun. I just wish I could actually show you instead of seeing it through photos," Luna said.

Kit looked down at the PHS and smiled. "I don't need to be there to feel what you're feeling in these, Luna. As long as you're smiling, I'm smiling. But thank you for this. Business is slow right now anyway so I'll have a good look at them until you come back."

"Thanks, Aunt Kit. We'll be back soon," Luna said. With that, she and Sora left the shop and continued down the road.

"Think it's time I bust out the old sunglasses?" Sora asked, slowly pulling up the sunglasses from his pocket to reveal just the left lens.

"Sora, if they haven't noticed you before, then they certainly will when you're the only one wearing them on a cloudy day," Luna pointed out.

"Ugh, I never have a chance to bust them out. Guess I gotta keep my head low instead," Sora said.

They crossed through Bloom Gardens Park, somewhere Sora recognized as being quite close to the street Luna's home was on. Also not too far from here was the place where Desiree had completely dominated and humiliated him. Every time he thought about asking Moira's Crescent for help it was her that reminded him of why he was initially against the idea. If he was going to deal with them, then meeting her again would prove to be the biggest roadblock of them all.

After a ten minute walk they soon reached the bridge to the castle. Up ahead, they could see two guards, both wearing an official royal guard uniform.

"Hold it. Entrance is currently forbidden on orders of King Cecil and Queen Rosa," the guard on the left spoke out as soon as Sora and Luna reached them.

"We know them. We're friends with them," Sora told them.

"Is that so? And I'm a mermaid from the lost city of Atlantis," joked the second guard, causing both of them to laugh.

"Actually, FYI, you'd be a merman and it would be from Atlantica. Atlantis is completely different," Luna corrected. The two guards looked at her with astonished faces and Luna quickly blushed and looked at Sora as she stepped back. "Yeah… S-Sora, I'll leave this to you."

"I mean… I'm not really sure what I can do if they won't let us in…" Sora said. He looked at the guards for a moment, noticing that they carried nametags along with them. It was "Rand" who caught his attention of the two. He had heard the name before, but something still felt wrong. Not with it, but with the person wearing it.

Looking back up at his face, Sora asked, "How's your daughter doing?"

"Daughter…?" the man asked slowly, his eyes darting towards his partner for help. That was all Sora needed to know. Summoning his Keyblade, Sora quickly shot two fires out, hitting each guard and sending them to the ground.

"Sora, what was that for?" Luna asked.

"They're not guards. I couldn't remember his face, but I know that a guard named Rand was here and he and his partner allowed me and Celes in to see Cecil and Rosa," Sora said. "He also asked for an autograph from Celes for his daughter. That was when I knew for sure that he wasn't who he was claiming to be."

"Sora, you smart guy!" Luna teased, prodding at his arm. She looked back to the gates and released Kupopo to summon her Keyblade. "Guess we better make sure we're ready for what's up ahead."

"Don't worry. As long as we stick together, there's nothing to be afraid of," Sora said. He grabbed the gate on the left while Luna grabbed the right. Nodding to each other, they pushed open the gates and stepped into the castle grounds.

"What the hell?" Sora said shakily as he looked around. In front of him were numerous guards sprawled out on the ground. Some of their eyes were open but unmoving. There was no doubt about it. They were dead.

"Are these… normal guards o-or-"

"I really hope not," Sora said. As they walked through the cluttered courtyard, Luna stopped upon seeing someone stirring not too far from her. She called out to Sora and ran over to the guard.

"What happened here?" Luna asked.

"A demon… a terrible demon… no matter how much we tried, he wouldn't stay down. He wouldn't die. Please… I want to see my friends again. Don't let me die. Not… again…" the guard whispered before letting out his last breath.

"Not again?" Luna repeated, looking back to Sora.

"Not sure. Let's just keep going," Sora said. In spite of his words though, he was very much disinclined to continue onward but he couldn't abandon Cecil and Rosa either.

As they headed deeper in, they came across more and more bodies on the floor. On their bodies were pauldrons similar to those worn by Terra, Ven and Aqua. It confirmed that they weren't normal guards but Keyblade wielders instead, though to which faction, they were still uncertain of.

Sora and Luna reached the already open doors of the throne room to find someone's back turned to them. In front of him, someone else was crouched on his knees. He let out pathetic whimpers and opening his eye every now and then to look up at the man in front of him. Spotting Sora and Luna at the door, he opened both eyes and smiled.

"You… you've come to save me, right? Please... don't let this man kill me!"

Kohle turned to look at them before looking back at the man. "Save your breath. As if they're going to help a member of Horus."

"Horus?" Sora asked.

Kohle responded but not through words. He lifted his Keyblade up and delivered it swiftly back down.

"NO!" Luna yelled. She attempted to run forward but Sora caught her before she could. She watched as the Horus member let out an audible gasp before falling to the floor. She bowed her head in disapproval. "What did it matter if he was Horus? At the end of the day, he was alone, and you killed him without even hesitating."

Kohle looked at her and looked away. Luna hadn't caught it, but Sora had. Had he just seen… remorse? The emotion conflicted with his actions just prior and didn't make sense at all to Sora.

"How do you look so much like her? Could it be… reincarnation?" Kohle mumbled to himself.

"What are you talking about? You mean Luna?" Sora asked, alternating between looking at her and Kohle. Luna looked at him in confusion.

"Moira?" Kohle suddenly called out.

Luna and Sora exchanged bewildered looks. Luna was first to look back at Kohle with knitted brows. "Err, my name's Luna."

The light in Kohle's eyes faded and he instead looked past her. Then, he started walking towards them. "Hah, hah, is this your revenge, Kingdom Hearts? Your malice truly runs deep."

Sora stepped backwards, watching carefully as Kohle walked past them. He soon stopped and turned to look at Sora.

"So you left the islands, even after I warned you not to interfere anymore?"

"I can be pretty stubborn. I guess the message didn't quite get through," Sora replied.

"You're the least of my concerns. The mess you've left will take quite some time to clean up, but once I'm done, you're next. That prophecy is far from over. If I'm right, there's something bigger coming, and as always you'll be at the center of it. I won't let it happen," Kohle said.

"Is that the same for all of Moira's Crescent?" Sora asked. "We don't need to do this. We should be working together for the common good."

"I don't know about Moira's Crescent. Where I'm going, I don't want them to follow. If you know what I am, then you know I've fought in the war. This time, my body can take everything they throw at me," Kohle said. "Keep my friends out of whatever little game you're playing, Sora. I warn you now."

"I don't appreciate your threats," Sora said, turning to face him head on. "And this isn't a game to me!"

Kohle let out a huff of amusement and looked in front of him. "Queen Rosa's safe. She's in her room."

Kohle left the room and soon the castle, leaving behind an angry Sora and distracted Luna.

Sora clenched his fist tight and flicked it through the air. "Damn it! What is with that guy and managing to ruffle my non-existent feathers? He thinks he can do whatever he wants!"

"Sora, he called me Moira?" Luna asked, interrupting Sora's rant. "I don't know, it just bothers me that a name that's been popping up is now connected to me. Like, it seemed like he genuinely thought it was me, like I look like her or something."

"Huh… maybe you have a Nobody?" Sora asked.

"That makes no sense, Sora. Isn't one of the conditions of being a Nobody that you have to lose your heart? Which I never have? Besides, she's definitely someone from his past. Agh, now I wish I'd asked him when he was here!"

"I really doubt he would have even told us," Sora said. "Then again, maybe it's just me he hates. Want to see if you can catch up with him? I'll go and come back with Rosa in the meantime."

"Okay, see you in a few," Luna said, taking off for the entrance. Meanwhile, Sora racked his brain as to where Rosa's room was. He found himself taking a right just outside of the throne room, heading to the area where Luna had once slept after being possessed by her Chimera.

"Why do they make these castles so big? I'm pretty sure they don't even use half the space they have," Sora said to himself as he wandered the halls. The number of corpses in his path had drastically reduced since leaving the main hall, leading him to the conclusion that Kohle had probably made his presence known beforehand to bring them to him. A normal man would probably have been more careful about drawing attention to himself, but an immortal? Sora imagined that there was little fear involved there.

Finding a set of stairs leading up, Sora took them in hopes of finding the bed chambers. On the second floor, Sora finally found what he was looking for. Opening the room, his eyes drifted from Rosa to the room around him. He had been expecting the room of a royal to be a bit more extravagant, but Rosa's almost seemed like a normal girl's room if not for the luxury poster bed and various paintings of what he assumed were Rosa's parents around the room.

"Sora? You're back! Oh, I'm so glad you're here. Is that man, Kohle, is he still down there?" Rosa asked, walking towards him with both hand cupped in front of her. Her appearance was prim and proper as always. Her simple yet elegant white dress reaching to knee-length seemed quite endearing to Sora.

Sora shook his head. "No, he left. Luna's waiting for us in the throne room."

"Then let's hurry," Rosa said with a prompt nod. She seemed to take the lead, sparing little time in hurrying for the door.

"Where's Cecil?" Sora asked.

"I told him to continue fighting in the name of our kingdom. As for me, I can still lead by showing the resolve and strength that my people have shown for generations. I refuse to capitulate. I'm not as easy as I look to break down, I'll have you know," Rosa said with a victorious smile.

"The thought never crossed my mind," Sora replied. The thought had indeed crossed his mind, but he had never presumed her to be weak. Only that he had wondered how she had managed to keep her spirits up in a castle full of enemies.

They reached the throne room to find Luna and Kupopo waiting for them. A smile blossomed on Luna's face upon seeing the queen and she was quick to run up to them.

"Queen Rosa, are you okay?" Luna asked.

Rosa nodded and gave her a gentle smile. "No need for formalities. Rosa will do just fine. I recall the last time we met, things weren't so fortunate for you. How are you doing, Luna?"

"Much better, thanks," Luna said. She then looked to Sora with a glum look that told him all he needed to know. "He left before I could catch up. Having Keyblade gliders is a crime against us glider-less people. You know, if I had one it would be a witch's broom."

"Considering how afraid you are of heights, I can't imagine you taking off any farther than a few feet before you start panicking and crying or worse," Sora said.

"Oh. True, _hehe_ , kind of just got swept up in the moment," Luna said. Rosa let out a chuckle and looked towards the entrance where all the fake guards lay.

"I feel sorry for the one that has to do the cleaning duty," Sora said before looking to Rosa. "You have any idea where your husband might be?"

"I don't. That said, I've been paying close attention to the gossip among my captives and they've talked of a small resistance group causing trouble for them. I say resistance but they would probably dismiss it as an insurgence. I'm sure Cecil is involved in that group in some capacity," Rosa said.

"Then we need to find them. What happened to all of the actual guards? Did they…" Sora lingered on the question, dreading to know the answer.

"I managed to quell the fighting before most of our forces were taken. As a part of our terms, the surviving guards were instead locked up in the dungeon. The key should be on that man." Rosa walked over to the man Kohle had just been by and scavenged the body quickly before retrieving a set of keys.

She then led them to the left side of the castle and down a couple of stairs into a dreary long hallway of jail cells. It certainly stood out in the residence of someone he assumed to be a warm and kind-hearted person.

"Woah, Rosa, I had no idea you had a dark side to you," Sora said in jest.

"This room was built probably during the castle's inception. I believe my father was the first to stop using it and ever since its walls have lain bear to none. Not until now," Rosa said. They reached the end of the room and Rosa looked into the cold, stony bricked walls of the cell to see the exhausted and defeated faces of guards. One of them looked up at her and the light soon returned to his eyes.

"It's Queen Rosa!" the guard announced to his fellow companions. The guards all looked up and blood seemed to return to their pale faces. Seeing their leader gave them strength, and they were soon up and celebrating, as were the prisoners in the jail cell opposite them. Sora counted eleven in total. Eleven survivors of the castle's guard. And the rest…

"We've taken our castle back, but Alexander is not yet won. We have much work ahead of us," Rosa said, as she fumbled through the keys. Unlocking both, the guards poured out of their cramped conditions. To Sora's surprise, one of the guards walked up to him.

"You helped Her Majesty out? I didn't think I'd see you again. I'm the guard who got the autograph from Celes, remember?"

"Rand! I'm glad you're alright," Sora said. The thought of a daughter coming home and not knowing whether her dad was even alive or not was a harrowing thought. He imagined she'd be in for quite a surprise if she hadn't seen him in weeks.

"This guy here figured out the guy at the gate was posing as you because he remembered you had a daughter," Luna said.

"Really? You don't know how happy that makes me feel that you remembered. I have a lot of explaining to do when I see her and my wife again. It's just a shame the other guard who was with me, Gad… he didn't make it. It'll be hard to explain to his wife what happened to him. And he had a kid on the way too," Rand replied.

"We'll do our best to support his and the other guards' families. For now, I need you and the others to get something proper to eat. Rest if you need to also, but there are a lot of bodies in the main hall as well as outside. We need to dispose of them," Rosa said.

"They'll be disposed of at sea, Your Majesty," said one of the guards. Rosa nodded at him before starting off again with everyone following behind. "Sora, Luna, I'll stay behind to help out in the castle. Could I ask of you to find my husband and tell him that I'm safe?"

"Of course, ma- err, Rosa," Luna said. "Hmm, there must be some clue as to where they are, otherwise we'll be wandering around aimlessly all day."

"I think I know someone who can help us out," Sora said.

A few miles away, Eleftheria Hollenbeck felt her body shiver. She looked around for a moment, her eyes landing on her cat Marty for a moment before looking back to the pie in her hands that she had just taken out from the oven.

"That was weird."

* * *

 **A/N: So I think you can guess who'll be making their return. Unfortunately they won't play a major role in the story but they'll be like the FF characters when it comes to interacting with Sora and co, and who doesn't want to see how they're doing after their respective games? But until they've all been actually introduced, please look forward to the next chapter when lots of fancy stuff happens.**


	42. The Counterattack

Chapter 41

The Counterattack

The ring of her doorbell spelt the end of Eleftheria's life. Not literally, but in the sense that whenever she met him, it was usually followed by something crazy that resulted in her normal life coming to a complete halt.

This wasn't to say Eleftheria had much of a life right now anyway. After leaving her job at _The Alexander Times_ on a sour note, Eleftheria had taken to freelance writing in hopes of being able to write what she wanted to write about. The thing she had underestimated though was that at the end of the day it wasn't what she wanted that mattered, but what the public wanted. She couldn't influence public interest by herself much less hope to take on the bigger news sources like her former company.

The doorbell rang again.

She usually didn't have any guests around this time of day. Well, she didn't really have many guests at all usually but that was beside the point. It made her immediately suspicious and fretful. With the strange knights in armor that had been roaming about the city for a month and half now, she thought her fears fully justified.

She looked over to a corner of the room where a toy lightsaber was resting. It wasn't exactly real but any form of defence was better than no defence at all. Grabbing it, she walked over to the door and unbolted it. If it came to the worst outcome, she knew of a few possible ways of getting out of her apartment. She was the kind of person who devised plans for imaginary zombie apocalypses out of boredom.

Grabbing the handle, she took a deep breath and opened the door.

"Hi there!"

"AAH!" Eleftheria yelled upon seeing Sora's face. She soon let out a sigh and lowered her lightsaber. "You again? And how did you find my apartment anyway?"

"We asked around." Sora looked down at the lightsaber in her hand and gave her a questioning look. "What's that for?"

"Oh, nothing. Nothing at all," Eleftheria said. She pressed the button on the hilt to turn off the light and sound effects.

"You were gonna attack me with that, huh? So much for hospitality these days," Sora said.

"Can you blame me? With everything that's happening in this city, everyone's pretty much paranoid, not just me. You've seen what I mean, right?"

"It's kind of hard not to," Sora said.

"I know! It's kind of like the pollen season but with humans bothering me instead," Eleftheria said. She looked past him to see Kupopo and Luna who beamed and waved at her.

"Hey, Eleftheria! We only met briefly so you might not remember me. I'm Luna," she said.

"Nice to meet you. Yeah, you know your face is on wanted posters all over the town, right? I mean, I can't be seen to be associating with a criminal. I have no idea what you did but keep me out of it," Eleftheria said.

"Sora hasn't done anything wrong. We're going to take Alexander back but we need your help," Luna said.

Eleftheria's eyes narrowed as she searched their faces for the tiniest bit of mischief but instead found sincerity. She moved to the side to allow Sora, Luna and Kupopo into her room. First thing was first. She had to get them out of view from anyone else in her complex.

"Oh, hello, Mr. Kitty! Or is it a Miss?" Luna asked, crouching low to pet the Scottish Fold.

"It's a he. Marty's his name. It's a movie character reference thing," Eleftheria replied before turning to Sora. She watched perplexed as Morph jumped out of Sora's hood and shapeshifted into a smaller version of her cat. Marty hissed and ran away from Luna while Morph changed back into his original form, bursting into a fit of laughter.

"Hey, that's not nice, Morph!" Sora chided.

Though her stare was blank as she watched this unfold, Eleftheria's mind was swimming with so many things that she didn't know where to begin.

"So I'm almost afraid to ask… what do you want?" she eventually asked.

"We need to know where the resistance is," Sora said.

"Uh-huh," Eleftheria said with a slow nod of her head. "And why do you think I'd know where they are?"

"It was a wild guess actually. I just thought since you were a journalist, you'd have connections," Sora said.

"If I had _connections_ as you put them, I probably would have been arrested by now for co-conspiracy and links to terrorism. Besides, I have no connections since I kind of left my job because reasons," Eleftheria mumbled the last few words.

Sora raised a brow in curiosity. "Really? What happened?"

"I kind of got too big for my own boots. Thought my ego would be enough to carry me to the golden gates of success. Turns out going your own way is not as easy as I thought it'd be," Eleftheria said. She looked at Luna and Marty and sighed. "Actually, I didn't think it would be easy. The worthwhile things never are. I knew I'd have to work for it and I am, but it's not paying off like I'd hoped. Maybe I was acting a bit irrational when I quit my job."

"Don't say that! You can't go back on your dreams now!" Luna jumped up to exclaim, taking Eleftheria by surprise. "I say the only time you fail is when you stop trying. If it hasn't been successful, it just means you might need to re-evaluate your approach."

It took a moment for Eleftheria to recover but when she did, it was with a smug smile. "I appreciate the motivation but I never said I was giving up. I'm Eleftheria Hollenbeck, soon to be the go-to journalist in the town. Say, if you really are serious about helping the town out, mind if we have a quick interview after all is said and done?"

Kupopo's head drooped. "Didn't see this coming, kupo."

"Oh come on! If I'm going to help you out, I at least want a little something in return. You scratch my back and I scratch yours. That's how the exchange of information works," Eleftheria pleaded with cupped hands.

"So you know where the resistance is then?" Sora asked.

"What? I didn't say that," Eleftheria denied.

"You totally did! Or at least you implied it," Sora shot back. He looked to Kupopo. "You heard it too, right?"

"I said if I'm going to help you out! Sheesh, people just want to construe every little thing," Eleftheria said.

"Well, you are a journalist. Isn't that basically what you do? Sensationalize?" Luna asked.

Eleftheria tapped the temples of her eyewear and smiled. "Please, I'm not some kind of a tabloid trash rag trying to sell gossip. You think I'd sell out like that? I'm an honest-to-goodness writer trying to make a name for herself in a world that just doesn't care about what's really important."

Sora gave her a sympathetic look and looked to Luna who seemed equally concerned. Her situation wasn't unlike anything they had faced before. The feeling of frustration when it felt like nothing was under their control. As someone who had suffered from depression, Sora understood it all too well.

"I don't mind giving an exclusive look into the life of the 'saviors of Alexander', provided it doesn't take too long," Sora said.

Eleftheria's eyes lit up and she beamed. "Really? Oh, you guys are the greatest!"

"But just so we're clear, you have to reciprocate," Sora said.

"Sure, sure, oh but this is just so exciting! Time to put my name in the history books. Oh, and a deal's a deal of course. I _might_ have an idea of a person who's connected to the resistance," a hyperactive Eleftheria said. "She's someone you know very well, Sora."

"I… do?" Sora asked.

* * *

The door opened and it took a moment, probably out of surprise, for Celes to register their faces before smiling.

"You're back! Come in quickly," Celes said, ushering them in. Right to the point as usual. She didn't question their being there, knowing that they were in danger. Celes' house had been a twenty minute walk from Eleftheria's resulting in entering a completely different part of town that Sora, and for that matter, Luna as well knew little about. Sora brought down his hoodie and stepped in after Kupopo, Luna and Eleftheria.

Though her house was big, no surprise for the income of an opera singer, it was also nothing very extravagant, much like Rosa's room. They were both very humble, putting the needs of others before the needs of themselves, and if what Eleftheria had told them was right, that modesty had extended to her actions as well.

"You've already told them, Eleftheria?" Celes asked.

"Should I not have?"

"No, it's not that. If anything, that makes things easier actually," Celes said.

"You're part of the resistance, Celes? That's amazing!" Luna exclaimed.

"Not just part of it. I formed it. And it's all because of you two. Your story found a way into my heart. You both freed me from Zorn, Thorn and KRONOS. I wanted to follow in your footsteps, by freeing Alexander. I realized though that I couldn't do it alone." After taking them upstairs, Celes stopped at one of the doors in the hallway and gave them a quick smile before opening the door.

Within the room, five faces turned to look at them. Four of them Sora had never seen before but one didn't need any introduction. King Cecil had been sitting near the window when Celes and the group entered, prompting him to stand up. He was dressed in a V-Neck sweater and jeans, probably something not typically expected of the king to be wearing.

"Sora and Luna! When did you arrive?" he asked.

"Just today actually. You don't need to worry anymore," Sora said.

"What do you mean?"

"Queen Rosa is A-OK, kupo!" Kupopo announced with a spin.

"Rosa… you saved her? And took back the castle no less? Just the two of you?" Cecil asked dumbfounded by this revelation.

"It wasn't exactly us who did it. The people who had taken over were already dead when we arrived," Sora said. He spared letting him know the details because they weren't particularly important.

"Even so, she's safe. That's good. Then all that's left is to drive the rest of those Horus members out of Alexander," Cecil said, looking to the other resistance members.

"Well, there's no need to introduce His Majesty. We have Jessie, Ace, Barret and Antheia," Celes introduced. Each of them seemed enthusiastic to meet up with Sora and Luna. They had probably heard the stories from Celes so it made sense but Sora still wasn't thrilled with the attention. Not after he had sworn off playing the hero act.

"Is it the same elsewhere?" Celes asked Sora and Luna when everyone had settled back down.

Luna nodded. "There are others suffering as well, not just from Horus but from other factions and KRONOS as well. Our biggest hope lies in bringing a great power called Kingdom Hearts back to the Realm of Light. Err, that's what they call places like this where the light can reach."

"And how far are you from doing this?" asked Ace. "It's not that I don't trust you. I just prefer the facts laid out on the table."

"Well, we've found three of the things we're looking for already and we almost had the fourth but it got away somehow. We're trying to move faster now," Luna explained.

"So even if we take back Alexander, there's no guarantee it will remain safe forever?" Jessie asked.

"That's not how we should look at this. Permanent peace or no, every smile is precious no matter how long it may last," Celes said. She looked to Cecil before pulling a sword out from a well concealed hilt around her thigh. "This is the perfect opportunity to strike. Queen Rosa and King Cecil appear before their subjects and announce that they are safe and have been fighting from the inside. They'll tell their fellow Alexandrians not give up hope."

Luna slammed her right fist in her open hand. "It'll renew the people's vigor and Horus will find it hard to control them."

"And that's when we finish them off," Sora said. He looked at them all before turning to Cecil as he placed his hand on Sora's shoulder. He supposed he shouldn't have really minded about the attention if seeing him motivated other people. If him and Luna appearing could motivate a resistance group then he had to consider it as a powerful weapon in his fight against the Keybearer factions.

Before anyone else could say anything, Sora felt a strange sensation in his chest. It was like his heart had just been violently tugged. It wasn't quite right to say that it was painful, more that it felt like he had experienced a heart palpitation. As he fell forward, he found that he wasn't the only one in a similar sensation. Luna gasped and clutched her chest with Eleftheria near her to keep her steady.

"You okay?" Eleftheria asked.

Sora gritted his teeth and closed his eyes. "No, I… what… was that?"

"Sora…" Luna said, looking over to him slowly. "A piece of heart… it's here."

* * *

General Seren ran the nail of her thumb back and forth across her lower lip as she watched in anticipation. The piece of heart had been placed in a cylindrical container and stored inside a machine Seren had nary an idea about. If the experiment proved successful however, then Horus would have achieved something incredibly unprecedented. The ideal scenario was that they would be able to use this untapped light to destroy their enemies.

To her it was not so long ago—the battle in those apocalyptic grounds. She had been in charge of the second regiment there, directly behind Irva Torvald's first. It had been her first time seeing Kingdom Hearts. It had been all of their first times. She would never have thought that she could reach out so far that she could actually touch it. Not until now. She was sure this piece of heart came from Kingdom Hearts. It was like a pressure weighing down on her heart and though this wasn't as powerful, it still easily did what no other heart could.

"This power... it's astounding! This truly is a piece of Kingdom Hearts!" Even yelled from nearby. He had been one of the scientists at the castle they had taken in Radiant Garden. He had seemed all too eager to assist them when he had been asked. Then again, she imagined the light of Kingdom Hearts would entice anyone whose curiosity had no limits. "Now I understand what drove you people to fight like such animals."

"I don't need your quiddities. Can it be controlled or not?" Seren asked.

"No one ever really knows a heart. They're too complicated for that. Of course, when you think of it like that, the question then becomes how can you be sure that you are controlling the heart and not the heart controlling you?" Even looked towards her. When he saw the annoyed look on her face, he looked back to the container. "Answer me this. What did you think you could do with Kingdom Hearts anyway? Assuming, you had managed to get ahold of it?"

"What better a place for the light that has made each and every one of us who we are than in our own hands? If that light could create paradise in our world, if it could destroy the darkness, then it was worth seeking. That's what Irva Torvald will accomplish. Our enemies will either kneel to him and join our cause, or they will be wiped from the face of the earth. In all honesty, we would rather not have the latter. Irva Torvald wants to do what his father couldn't. Reunite the factions and build a better world. A true peace. But unless those factions know they aren't in a position to fight, that dream can never happen. That's why this weapon will be our deterrent," Seren said. She flipped her hair to the side and straightened her captain's hat before smiling. "Besides, have you ever tried to lead without power? Seriously, it's boring. No one listens to you."

Even chuckled. "How true. I'm looking forward to seeing how this plays out. Consider me a helpful bystander."

"What makes you think we won't just get rid of you after we're done with you?" Seren asked.

"Heh, it's a possibility, I admit. Still, even if my last moments in this world are spent within this tower, it was a life well spent if I'm finally able to research this most magnificent heart," Even said. Was that all this man saw this world as? A play box for his experiments, for the satiation of his curiosity. For a moment, Seren thought of asking him that question but promptly decided against it. She would have been a fool to dive into the mind of a mad man.

Even walked over to a lever on the main body of the machine and pulled down. As the electricity was fed towards the container, she felt something ripple out past her, causing her heart to jump. A smirk appeared on Seren's face and she looked out of the window to the many buildings encompassing her view. As the sun set, casting shadows on the city, the same could not be said for Horus whose future was looking brighter than ever.

* * *

A massive crowd gathered outside Alexander Palace as news of an announcement found its way spreading at an alarming rate. The murmuring of the crowd soon died down layer by layer as each row of the audience became aware of the row in front of them falling silent. As they looked to the front, cheers filled the evening sky at the sight of Rosa taking a stand at the podium that had been prepared. Cecil, now back in his paladin armor, was also behind her, waving to the crowd. After a while, the joyous crowd soon fell to silence and Rosa began.

"My loyal subjects, I appreciate you taking the time out of your day and at such a short notice to join me on the eve of a new beginning. More importantly, I appreciate everything you've been in these past few weeks. Courage, positivity, headstrong and hospitable. These are the qualities you have shown in this dark chapter of our history, values that frame us as the proud Alexandrians each and every one of us truly are. No matter how much pressure is applied, the shape of our resolve will never yield. Those who oppose us should know this now, that they may come at their own peril and meet their fates at the hands of a united people," Rosa said.

There was a resounding applause and cheer from the crowd following this and Rosa smiled. From the back, Sora and Luna watched the speech and though they couldn't see Rosa and Cecil's faces, they had no doubt in their minds that they were happy to make their safety known.

"If that thing we felt an hour ago was any indication, we don't have much time left," Sora said. Luna had theorized previously that what they had felt back at Celes' house was the piece of heart trying to warn them. It was Artemis who had later confirmed that their suspicions were indeed correct.

"They've done their job. Now it's time we do ours. Horus will regret they ever set foot in Alexander," Luna said. The two of them set off down the path they had come from. Rosa's speech had also served another purpose aside from motivating the public. It would hopefully put any innocent bystanders out of harm's way from what was about to ensue.

As they arrived at the tower, Sora found himself staring up at its length. This would be his third time breaching its walls. The first when Alexander had been nothing but a hub of darkness used by Maleficent to bring the Heartless from the Dark Realm into the Realm of Light, the second when he had infiltrated the sewers with Celes and had come across KRONOS' Project Rebirth at the very top.

"They've sealed off the sewers, the clever bastards. Looks like it'll be full-frontal assault," Barret said.

"Yeah, you'd know all about that, Barret," Jessie teased. "Or maybe not…"

Barret threw off his shades and gave her an annoyed look. "Wanna pick a fight, short stuff?"

"Simmer down, guys. You can annoy each other after this but right now, we've got a job to do," Ace said. He pocketed his hands and pulled out a handful of cards, looking at Sora and Luna. "Well, I know I'm not afraid. We've got two hardened warriors with us."

"I wouldn't say we're anything like that, but stay behind us anyways," Sora said. He pulled down his hoodie and looked at Celes before summoning his Keyblade. "Well? It's your resistance. You give the orders, leader."

Celes seemed surprised at this for a moment but quickly recovered and drew her sword. "Let's move out!"

The magic was quick in finding its mark. The Horus guards at the tower failed to react in time as the Keyblade wielders took them both out with Blizzard and Fire magic.

"Hey! What are you doing?"

Sora whipped around, but by the time he did, the girl named Antheia had already found her mark. She sprinted forward, dancing around the confused man and spun her kusarigama, cutting into his back. Sora turned away after hearing the man's screams and bolted forward, casting Fission Firaga at the door. The door now blasted off from its hinges, he and the others entered the Turm des Himmels to find a group of armored knights awaiting them.

"In position!" the one furthest to the back yelled. As the Keyblade wielders huddled together, Sora changed his Keyblade in to a shield and held it above him. He felt the weight of Luna on his shield for a brief moment before she cast Flare. The Keyblade wielders all dived out of the way, out of position, as the ground they had been on was blasted through.

"Keep them separated!" Celes yelled out near him. Sora ran forward with the shield and slammed one of the guards into the wall, pulling back to allow Celes to stab through one of the exposed parts of the armor.

As Sora backed away to look at the others he felt Celes' hand on his arm. "You need to keep moving. You wouldn't want that heart of yours to get away again, right?"

"You sure you'll be fine on your own? They're gonna be tough," Sora said.

"I'll stay and help them," Luna said. She dodged to the side of one attack and swung diagonally, striking the armored knight in the neck. She looked back up at him and grinned. "Can you hold out on your own… until I get there?"

"Who do you think I am?" Sora said, thumping his chest proudly. "Alright, see you guys on the other side."

Immediately setting off, he quickly found the stairs and began gliding and dashing upwards, his feet only having to touch the steps every once in a while before leaving again. He ascended floor by floor, keeping on the move and lashing out on the knights with magic. One of them soon reflected a Thundaga spell from Sora back at him, knocking him out of the air. As they moved in, Sora retaliated by kicking off the ground, sending a gust of wind that blew them back.

One of the knights slammed his Keyblade into the ground to nullify the attack before running forward to swing his Keyblade. Sora guarded against the overhead attack before ducking and swiping across his stomach. Seeing another knight come in to attack out of the corner of his eyes, Sora was about to guard again when someone else grabbed him from behind. Sora tried to pull away but the knight's grip was too strong to escape.

"Y-R-P! Attack!"

Suddenly three small lights burst forth from his Keyblade, two of them striking the knight that was coming in from the front to attack and the other slamming the guard holding Sora into the wall with Fire magic.

"Thanks, guys! I owe you one," Sora said as the three lights became humanely shapes.

"You owe us many, but who's counting at this point?" Rikku replied. Sora grinned at the truth of the statement before looking back to the other knights around the room.

"Cover me, okay?" Sora said. The Gullwings nodded and Sora sprung forward, turning his Keyblade into a shield again. As the knight he was targeting swung his Keyblade, Sora threw out his hand to knock the attack away before reverting the Keyblade and slashing at their lower torso. As someone else attempted to cast Firaga from behind. Paine raised her hand and cast Reflect, sending the spell right back at the knight. The room shook for a moment, Sora observing as some dust fell from the ceiling and the lights flickered. When his eyes finally came back down, they set their sights on the elevator, more specifically the light which showed it was coming down.

Sora ran over and waited until the elevator reached the floor below him before casting Fission Firaga. The elevator doors blew open to reveal the elevator shaft.

"What exactly are you planning to do?" Yuna asked.

"Something crazy, of course. Back in my heart you go!" Sora said, dismissing them with a wave of his Keyblade. He concentrated and summoned an Eaglider Dream Eater in their place. He grinned as Eaglider got low enough for him to get on.

"Quickly! We're being attacked!" yelled someone for the near the stairway. Sora looked back at the Elevator Shaft and quickly pointed his Keyblade at it.

"Let's go!"

The Eaglider took off and headed up the shaft, all the while Sora was clinging on to its neck for dear life. All he could say was that he already envied everyone else that would have to take the stairs. His nerves certainly weren't handling it well.

After what seemed like forever, Eaglider finally levelled out. Having been holding his breath like he was underwater for a while, Sora let out a relieved gasp and aimed the Keyblade at the door in front of him, blowing it open.

After flying out, Sora jumped off Eaglider and stroked its head before dismissing it. This would have been the last floor before the penthouse above if he remembered correctly. A warm sensation like hot air suddenly shot through the tips of his fingers. The Keyblade had probably sensed that what they were looking for was very close by.

Sora took a few steps when a large, bulky figure like a brick wall came rushing down the hallway at him in full speed, the chains on his body rattling as he moved. Sora barely had time to react and the man smashed into him, launching off the ground and into the wall.

Sora groaned and clutched his ribs as he struggled to get up. "Urgh… did I just get hit by a truck or are you really happy to see me?"

"Hahaha, to be honest, I actually expected you to come sooner."

Sora looked past the giant to see Mari Seren walking towards him. She placed her gloved hands around one of the giant's bulky arms and smiled.

"Where were you? On vacation? I don't think you want that heart nearly as much as you let on," Seren said.

"Then why did I come here?" Sora asked. He punched at his stomach, ignoring the pain, and slowly stood up.

"To see death's doors early, I imagine," Seren said. "You know, because I believe in your strength so much I've decided to put you up against one hell of an opponent. And just maybe if you manage to beat him, you'll find me right where you want me. Grendel, crush him."

She walked off, putting one knee-length white boot in front of the other as she did. Grendel soon occupied his entire view as the incredibly tall man adopted a grappling stance.

"I didn't know Horus were hiring from the circus. Did they finally run out of people who take them seriously?" Sora asked with a grin.

"Do you ever shut your mouth?" Grendel replied.

"Nah, I'm afraid not. I suppose you could say it's a real problem of mine. Wanna help with the solution?" Sora goaded. As Grendel moved to swing a fist, Sora tried to meet it with his Kingdom Key only to have the weapon knocked out of his hand. Sora looked back to him and smiled. "I, uh, don't suppose you have any places left at the circus?"

Grendel yelled and grabbed Sora by his jacket, flinging him into the wall. Pain coursed through Sora's back but he ignored it the best he could and tried once more to get back up. As Grendel rushed for him again, Sora sidestepped out of the way and kicked down hard with his soles against the back of Grendel's leg. As Grendel's left knee buckled to the floor, Sora moved around to the front and began swinging both fists, striking the giant's face several times.

Eventually, Sora could feel his arms tiring out and starting to grow heavy. Grendel, who seemed barely affected by the punches, grabbed Sora's arm and spun before throwing to the wall opposite. Sora flipped in the air and landed against the wall with his feet before springing off again with his Keyblade back in hand.

"Arrgh, DON'T MESS WITH ME!" Grendel yelled, grabbing Sora by the head with both hands and throwing him upwards. Sora hit the ceiling and would have hit the floor had Grendel know swung his foot, kicking Sora in the side and sending him back into the same wall. "I won't let you get anywhere near Lady Mari! I'll do anything to keep her safe!"

"Lady Mari?" Sora looked at Grendel from his position on the ground and shook his head. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Why do you think I joke? You don't know Lady Mari like I do. She, out of the kindness of her heart, take me in when I was abandoned and unloved. I, of both giant and human blood. I did not choose to be born the way I was, but they made me so, and not even they could stand the sight of their own son. Lady Mari saw different. She took me in and gave me shelter and warmth and food. She and Lord Irva both worked to convince Lord Irva's deceased father to take me in. That is why I'll protect the both of them with my life," Grendel said.

"I'm sorry to hear that. To be neglected by even your own parents? That's too cruel," Sora said. His hand found the wall and he slowly pulled himself back up. "And were this under better circumstances, maybe I'd even be able to sympathize. But even so, I won't let that stop me from doing what I came here to do. No matter what sad backstory you or her might have, I'm past the point of caring. You people have ruined so many lives in pursuit of your lofty ideals, and I'm going to put an end to it. So just tell me that your mother tried to drown you in a river when you were young. You or 'Lady Mari' get in my way and I won't hesitate to cut you down!" Sora yelled. He summoned his Keyblade back to him and pointed it shakily at Grendel. "The same goes for Irva Torvald."

"You can try…" Grendel grunted before running at him again. Sora cast Curaga and leapt to Grendel's side before jumping in the air and lifting him up with and air combo. Kicking off the giant's back brought him a good amount of distance away from Grendel. Sora cast Triple Plasma, knocking Grendel back before kicking off the wall and charged forward, drilling the Keyblade into his stomach. As he landed back on the ground, Sora swapped keychains to Oblivion and transformed his Keyblade into the rubber mallet before swinging. The swings left a trail of fire in their wake as Sora took advantage of the space around them to jump and deliver a series of strikes from different angles.

As Sora made for an overhead strike, Grendel grabbed the mallet by the head and tried to flip it and Sora by extension over. Sora let go off the mallet as he flipped and landed on both feet on the other side of Grendel. Immediately he summoned a second Keyblade, Oathkeeper, and lunged forward at the exposed Grendel, plunging the Keyblade straight through his torso.

Sora let go of the handle and backed away as Grendel moved slowly towards him, a pained look on his face and the Oathkeeper still stuck in his stomach. He reached out for Sora once more but Sora easily stepped to the side to avoid it. Grendel fell on his side with his hand still reaching out.

"Lady Mari… I'm sorry I failed you," he said.

"Don't worry. She'll be joining you soon," Sora said, dismissing both Keyblades. He walked past him and towards the end of the corridor. He looked back for a moment to see Grendel unmoving. If Kingdom Hearts had been fully functional, at least there would have been a chance that he could have lived a different life after this. One where he could have been loved. Maybe there still was a chance, for him and all the others.

Sora climbed the last few steps and entered the penthouse. Jazz Lounge music greeted as soon as he entered. With a few exceptions, namely the strange machines on the side, the room looked just like he remembered. Walking over to the machines, Sora inspected them closely. They weren't rooted in spot and were easy to move, Sora found. He suspected that they had been transferred from the basement laboratory to the penthouse piece by piece. It certainly looked like something he should have found down there instead.

On one of the pieces of equipment there was a small display on the console panel that seemed to register something in 'lx'. Sora wasn't quite sure what that stood for but whatever it was had been enough to crack the display. Was that where the heart had been then? Speaking of which, he hadn't felt the presence of the piece of heart for a while now.

He looked over to the table in the middle of the room. On it was the radio responsible for playing the music. He walked over and was about turn it off when he felt a presence in front of him. Sora looked up and held the Oathkeeper out in front of him to guard. What came instead was a Thundaga that split off into three different lightning strikes. While his Keyblade was able to absorb the first, the other two danced around and struck him from the sides. He dropped the Keyblade and fell, managing to place his arms on the table to keep him somewhat up.

Mari Seren landed in front of him and turned off the radio. "You don't like jazz? You could have said so."

Sora waited for the numbness in his fingers to go away before standing up again. "I don't have time for games. Where's the heart?"

"See, that's why I was questioning what you really wanted earlier. Had it come to mind that you could have simply just slipped past Grendel and followed me, you might still find your heart here. Unfortunately for you, an associate of mine has taken the heart to its rightful owner, now that we've determined it's the genuine article. I think you'll find it's with its rightful owner now," Seren said.

"Damn…" Sora cursed under his breath.

"As for why I stayed behind, well, you've been giving Horus a lot of problems as of late. Even going so far as to kill Irva's brother," Mari stated.

"Irva's brother?" Sora asked. He needed to keep her talking anyway until the tingly feeling in his body went away.

"Oh, Seneca didn't tell you? I suppose it's easier when you consider your opponents faceless anyway. Besides, Lord Irva never had the greatest relationship with his brother. Makes sense when his father favored him to inherit his legacy. I guess his younger brother could never let it go," Mari explained. She summoned her Keyblade and pointed it at him. "But I'm beyond petty family squabbles. If Irva is to build a world of peace, then it only makes sense I get rid of the obstacles in his way!"

As she swung down with her Keyblade, Sora brought his up to guard. Pushing back, Sora threw Seren's Keyblade off and moved in to attack. The two clashed Keyblades over and over as they moved around the room. With her height as an advantage, Seren kicked Sora in the chest, forcing him back and tripping over the table. Seren transformed her Keyblade into a lance and jumped high in the air before heading down with the lance's tip pointed at Sora's chest. Sora rolled off the table and the lance smashed through the glass table, scattering big and small pieces in all directions.

Seren twirled the lance in the air with one hand before slashing and releasing a gust of wind that blew Sora off the ground. He spun through the air and smashed through the glass that led to the balcony. Sora only just managed to stir when Seren grabbed his hair roughly and dragged him towards the balcony's edge.

"I'm pretty sure given your condition, not even you could pull some sort of miracle and survive this. You'll be the perfect display for those that try to erase our existences. You'll be their martyr, and when they see your death, your friends will all come running to Horus' doorstep, their hearts beating as one in anger. And that's when we'll unleash the power of the light against them," Seren said. Sora winced and tried to move but his attempts at escape were ultimately futile. She had too strong a grip on him.

Instead, Sora summoned his Keyblade quietly in his hand and pointed it at one of the couches in the room. Sora shot the plasma claw out to stick to the back of the couch just as Seren threw him over the railing. As Sora fell, the couch shot forward and hit Seren as she turned to meet it, smashing her into the railing and sending her over too.

Seren managed to grab on to the bars of the railing with her feet kicking about wildly in the air. Below her, Sora was hanging by a plasma thread with the couch he had attached the arm to anchored against the railing.

Sora reached out and grabbed onto the plasma with his right hand, then carefully moved his left hand away from the Kingdom Key's handle and above his right. He repeated this tedious but dangerous process as he climbed higher and higher. This same plasma arm had been able to hold down a tree to catapult Luna, Robin and his Merry Men into Prince John's castle so Sora had no doubt as to its strength in holding him, but a couch wasn't a tree either and he also had the railing possibly giving way to take into account.

Sora pushed those thoughts away and continued climbing. Each negative thought that piled brought him an inch closer to failure.

As Sora continued to climb the arm, Luna and Celes reached the apex of the tower and opened the doors to the penthouse.

"Where is he?" Luna asked, scanning the room.

"Not sure, but he was probably here," Celes said, pointing to the glass fragments on the floor and the large window just past it. Luna ran over to the balcony and jumped over the location with the least amount of fragments to reach the outside. She was about to walk over to the couch when she saw Seren grip the bars at the top of the railing. She pulled herself over, rolled across the couch and landed on her back.

"More of you? You're like a swarm…" Seren said breathlessly.

"What did you do to Sora?" Luna asked.

"Quiet down, he's just hanging out down there. Turns out he's smarter than he looks," Seren said, standing up. She tapped the pauldron on her arm and changed into her armored form. "Well, I'm out. Congratulations. You've won back Alexander. For now."

"Don't think you're getting away!" Luna yelled. She ran forward, jumped and swung with Dream Seeker but Seren warped out of the way and reappeared behind her. Luna spun around, swinging her Keyblade as she did so. Seren brought the cross-guard over her right shoulder and blocked the attack aiming for her back.

Celes came in from the other side and struck Seren in the side, forcing her to back away. Seren clutched her side and looked behind her before turning back to Celes and Luna.

"You really want me so badly? Then you'll have to work hard to get me. You know where to go. Just expect to face the full might of Horus when you get there," Seren said. She opened up a corridor of light behind her and ran through it.

"Should we follow?" Celes asked.

Luna shook her head. "No, it's too dangerous. Let's wait for Sora."

Once Sora reached the railing, Luna and Celes reached out and helped him over. He sat with his back against the couch's exposed bottom and closed his eyes.

"Where's Seren?" Sora murmured.

"She got away, but we'll meet her again and the next time we do, there'll be nowhere left to run," Luna said. She smiled at him and put a hand on his lap. "Looks like I shouldn't have left you alone."

"Hey, I held on, didn't I? And now my hands kind of hurt for it," Sora said. "Though I suppose a hug might help. Not too hard though. My back's kinda aching."

Luna leaned in and embraced him. Sora let his head rest against her chest and glanced over to Celes with a smile.

"Everything go okay?" he asked.

"Thanks to Luna. She gave them one hell of a fight. I see you've done the same," Celes said.

"Yeah? Then I suppose you could say we're like two peas in a pod," Sora said, rubbing Luna's arm.

* * *

As they exited the Turm des Himmels, Sora saw men in police outfits cordon off the area. They had probably managed to regain control over the police station with the help of the Alexandrian guards.

"Nice to see you guys made it out alright," Antheia said as they met up with the resistance group and Eleftheria. Sora noticed a few bruises on her cheek but she otherwise seemed to be alright. Next to her was Jessie and Barret, the former whose nose seemed to be slightly crooked.

"You okay?" Sora asked.

"It got a little crowded at one point and one of the douchebags punched me. He was wearing armor so you can imagine how much that hurt," Jessie said. "Barret took care of them though. He's a real one man army. We could have just sent him by himself."

"Aw shucks, Jess. That's real kind of ya," Barret retorted sarcastically.

"Hehe, I can't help it. You're like a cuddly bear sometimes, Barret," Jessie teased with a giggle.

"Where'd Ace go?" Celes asked.

"Had one of those massive keys slam down and fracture his shoulder. He's over by that ambulance." Barret pointed towards the vehicle just beyond the cordoned zone.

"Alright, I'll be right back," Celes told them before walking over to the ambulance. Sora looked over to Eleftheria who seemed to have her eyes fixated on something else and her mouth agape. Sora followed her gaze and found himself looking at a woman staring at him from quite close. She didn't look like she was a part of the police and unless Celes was hiding a convenient member from him, she wasn't of the resistance either.

"Err… hello?" Sora greeted. Luna looked at him and turned around to also see the woman.

She walked over to him and turned around, looking up to admire the tower as if seeing it just for the first time. Her actions confused them but they felt they had no choice but to play along.

"Oh wow, I didn't think I'd be seeing it up close. A tower representing the dreams of humanity, that unity could bring them closer to heavens than being alone ever could," she said. She looked back at them. "It's pretty neat, don't you think?"

"Uhm, I guess…?" Sora rubbed the back of his head as he exchanged looks with Luna.

"Oh, where are my manners. I often forget the order of these things. Never bring the superlatives before the introduction." She held her hand out to them. "You can call me… Enna Kros. I'm here to take you to see your friends!"

* * *

 **A/N: Lots of action this chapter and we even see some familiar Final Fantasy faces with the exception of Antheia who is OC. As for where Sora and Luna will go next... well, as Enna Kros says, it's time to meet some old comrades, but first, the aftermath of Alexander. Fun fact- If you know Enna Kros' real name (WoFF) then there's some irony in where she appears... or it's just a coincidence. Who knows anymore.**


	43. Reunions

Chapter 42

Reunions

"Hmm… hmm…"

Enna Kros tilted her head left and right in concentration. Meanwhile, Aunt Kit's eyes darted from her to Luna and Sora and back again. She was nervous, but Enna Kros seemed oblivious to the necessary amount of space required for any kind of interaction before things became awkward.

On their way to the bakery, the strange woman had filled them in on some minor details such as how she had managed to find them. According to her, Merlin had placed a trace on the PHS when he had given it to them, making it easy to track their location. They had also been apparently worried when the trace had disappeared for a while, which would have coincided around the time they had left the world for Treasure Planet. While the explanation was satisfactory, it still didn't explain how she had appeared at the Turm des Himmels without anyone noticing. Until she made that clear, Sora had to assume she was just proficient in magic or something as equally fantastical.

"I've got it!" The silver haired girl finally leaned back and raised a finger. "I'll have a cuppa. Thirteen teaspoons of sugar, please."

"All that waiting just for tea…? Wait… HELLO? THIRTEEN?! What are you, immune to diabetes or something?" a baffled Sora asked.

"Diabetes? What's that?" Enna Kros asked with a grin causing Sora to drop his jaw. He couldn't tell whether she was joking or being serious. Next to Sora and Luna, Eleftheria's jaw had dropped and Celes couldn't hide the smirk on her face.

"Uhm, I'll just… hand you the jar and you can put as much in as you'd like," Kit soon decided out loud. "I'll just brew the tea."

"That would be lovely," Enna Kros said. She looked towards Sora and smiled. Actually, now that Sora thought about it, she seemed to always have a smile on her face. Was she ever not smiling? Not that smiling was ever a bad thing either. "Now, while I'm waiting for my cuppa, I should probably explain what's going on. You might not be aware of this but while you two were off doing whatever it is that you were doing, Neuge and Yen Sid were working to form a union of representatives across different worlds. Right now, all they can do is hope to provide aid to places ravaged by the conflict of those Keyblade wielding factions and KRONOS. In any case, the Wayfinders' main objective isn't to get involved in the fighting, at least, not if they have to. They were established primarily by Neuge to oversee a new system that would break down the primitive rules of the previous world order."

"That makes sense. I don't think the previous rules could work in a world that's now become whole," Luna said. "Also, Neuge has never liked the old system. This gives her the chance to change that."

"From ruin comes creation, huh? You almost make it sound like what I did back at the Keyblade Graveyard was the right thing to do," Sora said.

"Well, I can't say it hasn't brought pain, but the seeds of hope are there. Put it this way—do you think a world of exclusiveness would not have eventually collapsed? I think people like you, Luna, were just the beginning," Enna Kros said.

"Me? What do you mean?" Luna asked.

"You're avant-garde, a tiny grain of sand that managed to leave the hourglass. I think people like you—dreamers—would inevitably have started popping up more and more over time. The current situation only forces them to confront that now as opposed to letting it take its natural course. Therefore, it's the Wayfinders' duty to ensure that the transition is as smooth as possible," Enna said. "And I guess within that operation, you could consider me… an overseer."

It boggled Sora's mind. Not what she was saying, that part he understood well enough, but how she was saying it. It felt like she was involved but at the same time, divorced from it somehow. Still, if she knew so much about the group Aqua had told him about then he couldn't really doubt her intentions.

"So, if they're trying to create the system after all this is over, why do they need to meet us now?" Sora asked. He looked to Luna before acknowledging Enna again. "We kind of have our business to attend to first, and it'll help in the long run."

"Well, I'm probably not the best person to explain it. Oh, here we are!" Enna looked at Kit in delight as she returned with a mug in one hand and a jar of sugar in the other. She reached for the spoon and began moving teaspoons of sugar one after another into her tea. As she did so, she returned to speaking. "If I were to say something however, it's that the darkness is coming. It's coming but it's not being brought by the shadows. It's being brought by the light, or perhaps I should say different interpretations over the light. The Wayfinders recognize that they'll have to get involved directly sooner rather than later to ensure that their efforts aren't squandered. The problem is they don't have the power to launch an assault. That's where you two come in. The more fancy details can come later. Just know now that your help will make it that much easier to get into Radiant Garden."

Luna gazed at the counter for a moment before looking to Sora. "You know, we have nothing to lose. If one of the heart pieces is under Horus' control then we'll have to go to Radiant Garden anyway. Also, I don't exactly feel comfortable with letting them hold onto something so important for so long."

"Yeah… Seren was talking about how they were going to weaponize it somehow. We act too late and there might be no recovering from whatever they have up their sleeves. On the other hand, if we act early, there's still the chance that they might not have completely figured out how to use it yet," Sora said. "Alright... we'll come."

"Wait!" Eleftheria interjected. "You promised me an interview, remember?"

Enna glanced at her. "And you would be…?"

"Eleftheria Hollenbeck! Ace journalist who's not so ace at the moment," Eleftheria said, letting out a sigh.

"Hollenbeck? Like Sophia Hollenbeck?" Enna asked.

"Yeah… that's my mother. You knew her?" Eleftheria asked.

"Your mother was highly praised for her role in reporting and promoting proportional wages. It earned her the Gold award of journalistic excellence, if I remember correctly," Enna said. "Say, the war of words is just as important as the war on the ground. The Wayfinders could use someone to spread their message for them."

"You're saying I can come work for you?" Eleftheria asked.

"If you want. It would certainly be an excellent opportunity to see new things and draw inspiration for your writing." Enna took a sip from her tea and closed her eyes, giving them a blissful smile. "Actually, you could say your role may be the most important one in laying down the foundation for the future. People from all over will know there's so much more out there because of you."

"Me? Important? I- I- uhh…" Eleftheria seemed to be having trouble latching onto the concept Enna Kros had laid out for her. Luna placed a hand on her shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile. Eleftheria beamed before looking to Enna. "You've got yourself a reporter. I can bring my cat Marty with me?"

"Of course! Just bring only what you need. You'll have everything else provided for you," Enna Kros told her. Eleftheria silently squealed and ran for the door.

"I'll be right back!" Eleftheria exclaimed before leaving.

"She's awfully chipper, but I guess this is her big chance," Luna said to them. She soon notices Celes staring at the front door. "You want to come too?"

"Huh? I… now that I know what's at risk, I can't avert my eyes. I know that the fight is much bigger than just Alexander now. I want to help," Celes said. She walked up to Enna Kros. "I'm a good fighter. Send me on the front lines along with Sora and Luna and I won't be a burden."

Enna Kros looked at her in surprise before laughing. "Oh, you are so serious! Well, you know what they say—the more the merrier."

"I won't let you down. I'll get my things too," Celes said. She flashed Luna and Sora a smile before departing.

"More Celes? Not a bad thing at all," Sora said.

"Hmm, does our hero have a crush on our opera singer?" Luna asked.

"Would it make you jealous if I said yes?" Sora asked back with a cheeky wink.

"Not the thing I think you should be admitting to your girlfriend but I can forgive you since I have a total girl crush on her too," Luna replied. She looked to Aunt Kit for a moment before speaking. "Do you think you could pick us up the day after tomorrow? We kind of just got here and I'd like to spend some time with my aunt and show Sora around a bit more."

"That's perfectly fine. There's no need to rush." Finishing her tea, Enna Kros let out a satisfied sigh and placed the mug on the counter. "Well, that was quite refreshing. Perhaps I can sample some of your bread too while I wait? Oh, but I don't have any money on me."

"Well, I have some leftovers that I was going to bring the nursing home and hospital. I suppose you can have some of those," Kit said.

"Can I come with you? It'll be like old times again," Luna asked.

"I couldn't ask for a better partner," Kit replied.

"I'll help too," Sora pitched in.

* * *

 ** _Castle Core, Radiant Garden_**

The elevator door opened and General Seren stepped out to a spacious room with not much more in it than the catwalk leading up to the round platform in the middle. She reached this platform and stood in between Sabbat and June Caster, watching as the heart in the center floated up and down ever so gently. Also with them was Irva Torvald and Even. Why the latter suddenly felt he held such great importance to be among them had no doubt been due to a massive boost in his ego from being allowed to research the heart. Mari would be keeping her eye on him for the time being.

"You've returned. Let me guess… what is it the kids say these days? You got wrecked?" Sabbat said.

"Rekt, nowadays. Hmm, what will they think of next?" June corrected him with a finger on her lower lip.

"It wasn't nearly as one-sided as you were making it out to be. I almost had Sora, but he caught me off guard. And then his friends arrived," Mari replied.

"That does seem to be the usual rebound when it comes to Sora, yes," Even said.

"You know how he fights?" Irva asked with folded arms.

"Enough to know that no amount of data I could gather would create an accurate enough simulation of what fighting him would be like," Even said.

"Then you haven't seen Irva," June said. "What about Grendel?"

Mari shook her head and Irva looked down at her feet. "I see. Then we'll have to make sure we don't end up like him. I'll make myself clear. I can't afford to lose any of you. When you fight, make sure you live to see another day."

June beamed eagerly. "They come to our doorstep and we can take them. Even more so now that we've finally found this castle's secret. To think this was what your father was hiding here the entire time. The previous rulers here probably had no idea that this castle held a different purpose."

"So this town was originally Horus' main stronghold… I had wondered about the walls surrounding the town. Considering the worlds had once been separated, there would have been no need to worry about invaders. I suppose those were erected during or before the Keyblade War began?" Even asked. Mari and June gave each other a secret glance before looking back. They seemed to be on the same wavelength when it came to their opinion of Even.

"I cannot say. Though my father was born here, I was not. I never questioned him about the walls. I never questioned him about much of anything," Irva said. He held up his hand before curling it into a tight fist. "Now I know. I never needed his answers. I have my own. This, I do out of necessity. It's time for Horus to take flight."

* * *

After taking a well-rested sleep, Luna and Sora were ready to start the morning of with a fulfilling breakfast of eggs, bacon, croissants and apple segments before heading out with Aunt Kit to bring some of the food to the retirement home and hospital. Enna Kros had already left with Eleftheria and Celes the previous night, having made a promise to return in two days' time.

As they went around, Luna excitedly reminisced on their adventures after leaving the islands. Scottish highlands and clan problems, the infamous Davy Jones' Locker to the high seas, the strange creatures of Gravity Falls, almost getting married to an orangutan and finally discovering the ultimate treasure gathered from many worlds all over… it had certainly been enough content to last the entire trip and Kit had plenty of questions for them along the way.

After dropping off the remaining leftover food at the hospital cafeteria, Luna, Sora and Kupopo temporarily separated from Kit, with Luna telling her that the trio would meet back up with her at the bakery in the evening.

"Luna, hey, where are we going?" Sora asked as Luna dragged him through the crowded streets. There was a feeling of jubilation in the air as the public came out on the streets to celebrate taking back their city. The few other Horus members who had been away from the Turm des Himmels had been unable to contain the mobilized crowds and, like their leaders, had been forced to retreat.

"The fair, duh? You're gonna treat me to that cotton candy!" Luna said.

"Cotton candy? Urgh, not exactly a fan," Sora said.

"Cotton candy makes me sick, kupo," Kupopo also chimed in.

"I imagine it would take a while to get through one for you anyway, considering how small your mouth is," Sora replied. "But it's not that it makes me sick. It's just way to sweet and is pretty much nothing."

"Then Sea Salt Ice Cream. You can't say no to that," Luna replied.

"What if I told you I'm more of a liver pepper fan myself?"

"I'd call you a liar," Luna responded almost too quickly. She smiled at him before continuing on. It was a ten minute walk before they arrived at the park. Carousels, pendulum rides, water rides, rollercoasters, gift shops and food stalls were placed across 452 acres.

"Step right up! Step right up and try your luck at winning one of these fabulous prizes on the line here!" yelled an excited man behind one of the stalls. They looked over to see whack-a-mole machines and stuffed animals hanging from the stall above them.

"Mind if I check out my reflexes for a moment?" Sora asked.

"Well, if I get a teddy out of it, go right ahead," Luna said.

Sora grinned and handed the man 30 munny before taking up the hammer. "I'll take the hardest difficulty you've got."

"Your funeral, kid," said the man, reaching for the back of the machine. The recorded voice of the machine began counting down from three. Upon reaching zero, a buzzer was heard to signify the start of the games. Moles began popping up, slowly at first. Sora lazily tapped away at their heads without much thought. Even when more and more started frequently appearing, Sora was quick to catch them as soon as they appeared.

More and more people started to gather around the stall, watching with intrigue as Sora slammed away at the multiple moles in front of him with alacrity. Because his view encompassed all the holes in the machine, he barely needed to turn his head or move his eyes.

The final buzz came to end the game and Sora threw his hands up in the air to an impressed crowd who clapped for him and a stunned stall holder. A blinking high score of 114 flashed on the screen and the words 'New High Score' just underneath them. He set the hammer down and looked at Luna.

"Man… I was hoping for better. Riku would have totally beat that," he said. "So? Which prize do you want?"

"Huh? Oh, uhh…" Luna snapped out of her awe and looked up before selecting the third item from the right, a stuffed…

"Oh, a Totoro! Want to match with Sarah's, kupo?" Kupopo asked as the stall holder handed the prize over to Sora.

Luna nodded chirpily. "Yep! I think she'll appreciate it. And it's going to replace you anyway."

"Th-that's not funny, kupo! I'm indispensable!" Kupopo waved his arms about erratically.

"Hehe, then we'll put you to a test, shall we? Think you're daring enough to ride all the rides around here?" Sora asked, handing the plushie to Luna.

"HA! Jokes on you, kupo. I'm too small to ride those rides," Kupopo said.

"We'll just have you pretend you're a moogle doll then," Luna said. "Nice try but you're not getting off the hook that easy."

As they walked from location to location, the trio challenged the rides around the park. Sora had the most ease with the rides and Luna was most okay with the exception of the rollercoaster and the drop tower rides. Kupopo, who had been placed next to the Totoro in Luna's arms, seemed to share her lack of enthusiasm in these rides and at one point even retreated to the bushes claiming he was going to throw up. Sora wasn't even sure if Moogles could throw up, but he didn't think too much of it otherwise. The only other person who seemed to enjoy their time greatly other than Sora was Morph, who jumped out of his hood to experience the exhilarating speed and thrills as well.

"Man, time sure does pass when you're having fun. It's evening already," Sora said, after taking a bite from his ice cream. "You know, I just realized that we can talk to Yeul again. Remember how she said she didn't know what a hotdog was or tasted like? I'm gonna buy her one before we leave, wrap it in foil or something and have her try it."

"Ah, I just wish she could have it fresh. We're coming back here as soon as we save her," Luna said. She stopped and pointed towards the Ferris wheel nearby with her own ice cream. "Should we? It's the best vantage point of the city you're going to get."

"The fireworks are coming up soon, right? Let's hurry then. I bet we're not the only ones who are going to have this idea," Sora said. After five minutes, they reached the front of the queue and paid the admission price. They stepped into the carriage with Sora closing the door behind them and soon they were off. The carriage slowly climber ever higher, stopping every now and then to allow the carriages at the top to take in the skyline.

About halfway to the top, Luna looked at Sora directly and called out his name.

Sora looked away from the glass to meet eyes of appreciation and sincerity. "Hm?"

"I… wanted to thank you. For everything you've done for me. I was… really awkward growing up. Other than Astra, I never had any other friends and I've never been the sociable type. I always had my family to rely on, until I didn't. After I got out of the Realm of Darkness, I couldn't help thinking that it would only be a matter of time before everyone left me, and I was all alone again. But even when knowing what I did, you didn't judge me and that meant so much to me. And I was thinking about my journey so far while we were with Aunt Kit and it made me realize just how lucky I am to have journeyed with you, to have met new friends with you, and to have been loved by you. So… thank you."

Sora smiled at this and reached across to place a hand on Luna's lap. "Your ice cream is melting on your lap."

"Wha- AH!" Luna jumped up from her seat and swiped at her red polka dot dress.

Sora laughed and leaned back in his seat. "That's why I like you, Luna. You're a bundle of surprises."

"I pour my heart out to you and this is what I get in return? Hmph!" Luna huffed and sat back down.

"No, I appreciate it, I really do. I'm glad I could be a part of your life, Luna, just as glad as you've become a part of mine," Sora said. He also wanted to say something else. It would have been the first time telling her when she had never shown cowardice to utter it herself, even if it had been casually. "I… I lo-"

BANG!

Sora and Luna turned around to look out the window as the fireworks display at Alexander Palace finally started.

"Oh, we're getting close to the top!" Luna said, pressing her forehead against the window to get a better look.

"Yeah…" Sora whispered. He stared at the window thoughtfully before looking to Luna. "You changed your mind yet about not wanting to live here?"

If Sora had looked closely, he would have seen Luna's smile in the window's reflection. "As long as we're together, it doesn't matter."

"So the Realm of Darkness is fine then?" Sora asked. Luna sat on his side of the carriage and snuggled up against him.

"Well at least we won't have to pay the electric bill," Luna replied. The two laughed and enjoyed the impressive display of fireworks in front of them.

* * *

"You paying close attention? Cool. So I'm gonna shuffle the deck, cutting them in half. Once. Twice." Myde said, showing the card trick to the girls at the bar. He was wearing a Hawaiian shirt and cargo shorts along with the sunglasses. "Now, that we've done that, I'm gonna sprinkle a little bit of magic dust on it and show you the card in the front. What card is it?"

"An ace of hearts," replied one of the two girls.

"Yep. Now I'm gonna do it two more times," Myde quickly shuffled through the deck twice again, waved his hand over the back of the deck and pulled out an ace of spades from the front. He repeated the process a third time and placed an ace of diamonds on the counter next to the other two aces. "Seems simple enough, right? And you ask, what oh what could possibly be the trick in this? It's just three aces. Well, ladies, that is where you would be wrong."

Myde flipped each card and revealed three Jacks to them instead. The girls let out a gasp, looked at each other and laughed.

"Wo-ow! That's so impressive! How did you even do that?" asked one of the girls with a valley accent.

"Magician's secret," Myde said.

"Oh, so you didn't just keep the cards at the top then?" Lea interrupted, causing Myde to flinch.

The girls laughed and Myde feigned a smile. "Just a moment, ladies. I'll be right back."

Myde walked over to Lea and put his hands on his shoulder, pushing him behind the bar.

"H-hey, what are you doing?" Lea shouted at him.

"This way, please," Myde replied through gritted teeth. Once they were behind the bar, Myde lost his composure and erupted. "COME ON, DUDE! SO NOT COOL! Besides, what are you even doing here, Axel?"

"Oh, now you're just doing it on purpose. It's Lea. And what? I can't help an old acquaintance out? I'm hurt," Lea replied.

"Just an acquaintance? How mean!" Myde cried.  
"Yes, just an acquaintance. Don't push your luck," Lea said. "What are you doing with yourself, man?"

"What any guy does after he gets over his ex. Goes back in for more, heh heh, you know what I'm saying?" Myde asked.

"Yeah, don't ever do that again," Lea said. "So who's the lucky girl?"

"Huh? I haven't really found one yet…"

"No, you misunderstand. I mean who's the girl who realized in time to get out of the relationship with an unlucky guy like you?" Lea clarified.

"Wow, and after everything I did for you back in the Organization, man? That's cold," Myde said.

Lea folded his arms and stared at Myde blankly. "I've memorized a lot of things. Either you helping me out wasn't one of them, or it didn't happen at all."

"Huh. Well, who wants to dwell on the past anyways, right? Now that Alani's behind me, I'm moving on to bigger and better things," Myde replied with an overly confident smile.

"Ah, so Alani's our hero then," Lea said.

"Dude, I may not look like it but I know how to approach girls. And she's a model. Who would pass up a chance like that?"

"A model? Now it makes even more sense…" Lea muttered. "I guess all those swimsuit model magazines under your bed warped your mind, huh? Maybe next time you should try for someone more… your level."

"Lea, I think you're just jealous because I've been more successful at getting girls than you," Myde said.

"Oh, is that right?" Lea responded sarcastically. "Anyway, I'm not here for this. We need your help in taking back Radiant Garden."

"Taking back? What happened to it?" Myde asked.

"We can explain the details on the way back. Are you coming or not?" Lea asked.

Myde gave an awkward chuckle and raised his hands. "Ah, no, I- I don't think so. I don't fight."

"True, most of the time, you were of being incredibly lazy—asking people like Roxas to take care of your share of the work," Lea said. He suddenly grabbed Demyx by his shirt and shoved him against the bar. "Then let's put it this way, shall we? I guess that means you have a lot to make up for right now."

* * *

Luna slipped the piece of paper through the letterbox of Astra's house and looked back at Sora.

"There we are. If she comes back here, she'll know where we're headed," Luna said.

"I hope things can go back to the way they were before for you two," Sora replied. "I'll even throw in my two munnies and spend some time with her. At least then there's no way you can say I'm not trying."

"I don't think that. Astra can be pretty stubborn sometimes. Then again, so can I. Don't ask me how we've managed to stay best friends, I have no idea," Luna said smiling. "Okay, one more stop and then we're on our way."

Arriving at the graveyard, it took a while for them to locate the plot where Luna's parents rested. When they did, they found Aunt Kit waiting for them with a sullen expression. Luna knelt down beside her and placed the bouquet of flowers she had bought earlier against their tombstone. Standing up, she shared a look with Aunt Kit before looking back to the tombstone.

"I dream about talking to them sometimes. I can never tell if it's real or not until I wake up, but… it does feel real, and that's the hardest thing, knowing once I've woken up that we never actually talked," Luna said.

"What do you talk about?" Kit asked.

"That's the thing. Sometimes, I can barely even remember the conversations, but I don't think I mention anything about the worlds I visit. It's more just routine things. Even so, it made me really happy," Luna said. It made Sora think of his recent dreams with Yeul calling out for help. Even when he and Luna had visited her in the Perpetual Divergence last night, Sora hadn't brought up his dreams but it hadn't seemed like she was in any danger either. As promised, Sora had brought her the hotdog, enjoyed a rather funny reaction from Yeul towards it, and told her about Treasure Planet and the heart piece that was now within Horus' grasp. Yeul's words lent them some relief at least.

"Don't frustrate yourselves over it. I believe it may not be necessary to obtain every peace to wake Kingdom Hearts from its slumber. Six should be enough, though all seven would of course be the ideal. If they really have weaponized that heart, then it may be too risky to try and recover it," she had said. It made their job somewhat less stressful but it still didn't alleviate Horus having it. They would have to cross paths again anyway.

"Well, as long as they're in your dreams, I suppose that's some comfort to me. If it isn't just a dream, then I know they'll steer you towards the right path," Kit said. "And if that's not enough, I'm always here for you."

Luna smiled and went in to hug her. She would be leaving her aunt again, but Kit understood why, probably even more than she had the last time. Their parting involved no fretting or crying, only the promise to meet again hanging in the Alexandrian air.

Back at the entrance to the graveyard, they found Enna Kros waiting for them. She beamed at Kit and held out her hand.

"You can expect me as a returning customer quite a lot in the future. It was nice meeting you," she said.

Kit shook her hand with a lopsided smile. "So long as you actually pay next time."

"So you're all set? No takesies backsies?" Enna Kros asked. "I ask because I don't want you to think I'm pressuring you into doing this. It's your decision."

Luna looked at Kupopo then Sora and finally back to Enna. "We're ready."

Enna smiled and showed them the underside of her arm. "You might want to close your eyes. The process can be a little disorientating if you don't."

Sora, Luna and Kupopo did as they were told and heard the single click of Enna's fingers. When they opened their eyes a few seconds later, they found themselves on a bridge staring up at a familiar castle.

"This is… Rapunzel's home… we're in Corona? Just like that?" Luna asked.

"Yeah, just don't look over the edge. I'm pretty sure Eleftheria's puke might still be wandering down there… somewhere," Enna advised. She walked them to the guards at the castle's entrance and spoke the password Aqua had told them back in Port Royal: "Wayfinder."

"Right this way, Lady Enna," one of the guards said. They both parted to the side, allowing entry into the castle.

"Shouldn't they know who you are, kupo? Why do you need a password?" Kupopo asked.

"It's really just a precautionary measure. You never know when someone might just use a transfiguration potion to disguise themselves as one of us," Enna said. She led them through a series of hallways with doors leading to other rooms. They soon arrived at one door in particular, unique in its white color and gold patterns trailing across its double doors.

"Usually, this place is called the Treaty chamber but our hosts were gracious enough to lend us the room, especially with their daughter helping to convince them," Enna said. She pushed open the door and smiled at their surprised expressions. "Welcome to the Wayfinders."

Faces they never thought they'd see so soon welcomed them with warm smiles, even full on grins with some.

"Sora!" Ariel was the first to call out. Sora was momentarily puzzled for a moment until he remembered that she had been given permission to leave the waters on behest of her father.

"Ariel!" Sora called back with a grin. He looked past her and shook his head in disbelief. Aladdin, Geppetto, Pinocchio and Jiminy, Mulan, Hercules, Queen Minnie and Pluto, Rapunzel and Flynn or Eugene, Helen Parr and Mirage right next to her, Prince Adam and six of the Princesses of Heart, Kairi excluded. Everyone was there, something that took Sora and Luna good while to contemplate. That wasn't even counting Celes, Neuge and Yen Sid in the back.

"Long time no see, you two," Aladdin said, giving Sora high-five.

"I'm sorry, I think I speak for Sora as well when I say we're just completely baffled right now," Luna said.

"And this isn't even all of us," Alice said to the giggles of the other princesses.

"Oh no, is my mind about to be blown? Who else?" Sora asked. He wanted to laugh out loud, but any attempt only came out as gasps still struggling from seeing so many of his friends in front of him, and together at that.

"Well, Merlin for one. He and Yen Sid have been teaching us to use magic," Snow White answered.

"Magic? Wait, you're going to fight?" Sora asked. For this one he looked all the way in the back to Yen Sid for answers.

"They desire to help but feel powerless to do so. If, like Kairi, their hearts of pure light can be used to aid us, then they we will have seven powerful lights as opposed to just one. There is also the additional benefit that they will be able to protect themselves," Yen Sid said. "That said, their experiences are wholly different from Kairi's. For one, they cannot wield a Keyblade, making it somewhat more difficult to teach them. Still, they persevere partly because of their strong wills and partly because they have each other as support."

"I've gotten pretty good at fire magic. I could probably beat Aladdin hands down," Jasmine gloated.

"You probably could have done that even without the fire magic. You throw a mean kick," Aladdin admitted.

"Oh, and as for other members, well, we have Terra, Ven and Aqua although we haven't seen them recently. There's also Lea, Flora, Fauna, Merriweather… it's a pretty decent list. I'm sure you'll meet them all sooner or later," Alice said.

"And Eleftheria is here but she's resting in one of the rooms. The culture shock hit pretty hard," Celes said.

"I can empathize. It's not easy being a Mermaid turned human," Ariel said.

"You also haven't met the commander yet," Neuge added.

"Commander? You mean you're not the one… er… commanding?" Sora asked.

Neuge laughed. "You've been my pupil all this time and you still don't know me? Do I look like the leader type to you?"

"When I first started training with you, you didn't look like much of anything to me," Sora replied. "And if you're something, I certainly wouldn't be able to tell by how you look."

"Ha, touché. Actually, the commander is right behind you," Neuge said. Sora and Luna turned to the doorway to see a woman with rose colored hair looking at them. "Talk about dramatic entrances, eh, Commander Farron?"

"It's a coincidence," Farron answered before gazing at Sora and Luna in thought. "At ease, soldiers. No need to be so stiff around me. I've heard about you from the others. You're good fighters."

"Ah, thank you-"

"But you're also careless. You need to think about the situations you're jumping into and whether they're actually worth it before taking them on. Waste disrupts haste after all," she said. "You can call me the Commander if you wish, but I prefer Lightning."

"Lightning, huh? Heh, I'm looking forward to seeing why you're called that," Sora said with a grin.

"It's not what you think. The actual reason sucks pretty hard," Lightning replied. She walked past Sora and Luna and looked at the others. "Anyway, you picked a hell of time to bring them here, Enna. I just got word from Elsa. A group of Omnidroids are attacking Arendelle."

* * *

 **A/N: Wo-ah! Now we're all House of Mouse up in here now. Anyway, you may have noticed the de-roman numeralization of the chapter numbers. Aside from arabic numerals being cooler and a lot easier to understand for most, I just wanted the chapters to be consistent with the previous two stories in the trilogy. Also, for those who've played Persona 5, you ever think Lightning would have a palace? Seriously, I can't look at Lightning without comparing her to Sae Niijima anymore.**


	44. An Armor Unbreakable

Chapter 43

An Armor Unbreakable

 ** _Castle Courtyard, Arendelle_**

Several ice walls formed from the ground, Elsa stepping back as she raised them. The Omnidroid disregarded this, slamming its heavy mechanical arms through the thick sheets of ice in its way. With the way cleared, one of the Omnidroid's arms lunged forward again at Elsa who rolled out of the way of the attack. With her right hand still on the ground, she slashed through the air with her left hand, throwing out a projectile of ice shards that slammed into the Omnidroid's body. Thin layers of ice formed on its surface but it otherwise seemed unaffected.

"Mama, papa!"

Elsa's eyes grew big and she looked away from her opponent. She had thought they had evacuated everyone in the town but that voice… it was a child's. Elsa immediately set off in the direction of the voice. At the same time, a barrage of missiles shot out from one of the Omnidroid's sets of weaponry. Elsa turned and shot down the missiles, making sure they fell to the ground in a frozen state before continuing on.

The footsteps behind her grew louder as they the Omnidroid moved closer. Elsa quickly created a layer of ice underneath her feet and used it as a vehicle to move quicker across the courtyard. Eventually she spotted the girl hiding behind the debris of a damaged pillar and jumped off the ice platform, breaking off into a run for her. The Omnidroid stopped near some of the debris and grabbed it, flinging straight at Elsa. Elsa dodged to the side to avoid the collision and hugged the young girl.

"It's alright. It's going to be alright, okay? You'll see your parents so don't cry, okay?" Elsa assured her, stoking her hair. About a year ago, Elsa would not even have considered showing such affection, not because it was unbecoming of her, but because it would have brought more harm than good. Even now, remembering her sister's accident when they were younger made her slightly hesitant to touch sentient things, but when she remembered that the woman she had been a year ago was different from the woman she was today, the fear lessened and she was able to touch others without reservation.

The Omnidroid neared them and threw one of its arms out to attack. Elsa raised an ice shield that deflected the attack, but the second arm broke through and slammed into her arm knocked her and the child away. With little other options left, Elsa thought only in her last moments to cover the child and keep her safe. She wasn't sure if it would do anything but at least there was the chance that the young girl could find some opening to slip away.

While Elsa was looking away, Lightning ran in and delivered a sweeping blitz, knocking its legs off balance and sending it toppling.

"Over here, ugly!" she yelled after backing away. The Omnidroid turned its head to see Lightning, Sora and Elastigirl. As the Omnidroid tried to get back up, Sora cast Blizzaga on one of the legs multiple times as he moved in closer. Once he was at the leg, he transformed the Keyblade into a mallet before bringing it down on the leg, shattering it into tiny pieces.

"Sora, watch out!" Helen yelled. Sora looked towards her only to feel another one of the arms smash into his chest. As he was sent flying, Helen moved to his location and shapeshifted into a trampoline, catching him in time.

"Woah. Can't say it's not nice to have my own personal trampoline," Sora jested.

"Maybe I shouldn't save you next time," Helen said as she transformed back. She looked over to Elsa nudged her head in the direction of the exit. Seeming to catch on, Elsa gave a nod and picked the girl up before rushing for the doors. Noticing her movement, the Omnidroid tried to change direction to block them off but Sora ran forward and stabbed his Keyblade into the ground, casting Graviza to draw the Omnidroid in.

"They gone?" Sora asked, unable to see anything through the forcefield and the Omnidroid's large mass.

"You're good," Helen confirmed. Sora dropped the spell and fell back to Lightning and Helen's side. The Omnidroid stood back up and aimed for them again with another arm. Lightning and Sora dived out of the way but Helen's body stretched around the arm before making its way up it to the main body. As the Omnidroid retracted its arm, Helen crossed her legs around it then untangled them once the arm was back in its original place. She flexibly pulled her legs up until she was standing on top of the Omnidroid's body.

"Helen!" Lightning called, throwing her Blazefire Saber to her. Helen caught it and held it above her head before driving it down into the Omnidroid's head. As an arm made to reach for her, Helen quickly jumped away from the robot.

Lightning gave her an annoyed look. "You left my sword in its head?"

"What? You'd rather I have died?" Helen retorted.

Lightning gave a small smile and looked back to the robot. "It's fine. You actually did us a favor. Steel's a good conductor of electricity. Some thunder magic should shut this thing down for good."

"On it!" Sora told her, running for the Omnidroid's body. A claw from one of its arms opened up to reveal a spinning buzz saw. Sora stopped quickly and raised his Keyblade for a guard. The saw slammed into the Kingdom Key, sparks flying in different directions. Sora gritted his teeth and glanced down at the Keyblade before activating Ars Arcanum. The Keyblade illuminated a bright yellow and sliced through the buzz saw. He jumped onto the arm, hopped onto another as it tried to attack him and from there jumped onto the body. He grabbed Lightning's gunblade with both hands and cast Thundaga, trying his best to bear the pain in his hands.

An explosion from within the Omnidroid blew Sora and the Blazefire Saber away. Sora looked up from the spot he had landed to see Lightning towards him for support, or at least that's what he had thought. Instead, she picked up the gunblade next to him and looked back at the Omnidroid.

"Thanks for helping," Sora said sarcastically.

"Since when did the reckless need help?" Lightning replied coldly. Sora glared at her before getting back up. If this air of superiority continued to persist then she had to know now that Sora wasn't particularly one fore listening to authority. He wasn't going to allow her or anyone else slow him down. Not when he was so close.

"Um, that was easier than I remember," Sora remarked instead.

"They are being mass-produced. I suspect it's a lot easier to focus on improving one robot than many," Lightning replied. "Besides, what we just fought was a normal Omnidroid. You haven't seen the brick walls that are Tank Omnidroids, have you? These normal ones have higher manoeuvrability than the tanks to compensate for their weaker frame. Anyway, let's meet back up with Luna and the others."

Despite the easier fight for the trio, Luna's group were proving to have a much more difficult time, mainly due to the fact they were fighting the bulkier Tank Omnidroid. With only two arms and to legs, Luna would have thought it would have been much easier, but her attacks barely seemed to dent the thing and Aladdin and Mulan feared worse. In fact, the only one who seemed to be affecting it was Hercules whose punches seemed to knock the Omnidroid back each time.

"This isn't working!" Mulan said after she and Mushu regrouped with Luna and Aladdin.

"But what else can we do? Even Herc can barely even put a dent in the thing," Luna said.

Aladdin searched around for a moment before stopping at the bridge at the entrance of the castle.

"The water. We'll drown it," he said.

"Yeah, let's just hope it can't swim," Mushu replied. Luna nodded and moved quickly, jumping and striking to meet the claws of the Omnidroid. The Omnidroid spun its head around to before shooting lasers out of its visor. Luna deflected the lasers with her Keyblade, backing away as she did so. Hercules moved in undetected and pulled back before swinging, lifting the Omnidroid into the air and crashing through the castle walls.

"Guys, keep pushing it back!" Aladdin yelled. Mushu kept spitting fireballs out of his mouth while Luna flicked her Keyblade, casting Firagas. The combined fire magic didn't manage to inflict damage on the Omnidroid, but it did push it back past the gates. When the Omnidroid was at the bridge, Mushu and Luna ceased their attacks and Hercules ran forward to deliver a punch that knocked it over the bridge into the harbor.

Luna ran over to check that the Omnidroid had fully submerged before looking at them with a victorious smile. "Nice work team!"

"Oh, if it had jumped back out, I don't know what I would have done," Mulan said.

"Hey, after facing off against titans, this stuff comes naturally," Hercules replied.

"For you maybe. I'm just about ready to call it a day and fall onto a nice soft bed," Mulan told him.

"So you're all staying at Corona Castle? You don't go back to your homes?" Luna asked.

"Sure, once in a while to check things out, but we also have a duty to protect not just our homes but those of others. I mean, if you found out just how miniscule you were in the grand scheme of things, I don't think you could just stand by and accept things as they are, could you?" Herc said.

Aladdin grinned. "And besides, who wouldn't want to say they played a part in changing the world?"

"Right!" Luna grinned back at him. A feeling was creeping its way back into her that had been dormant for a few months. She remembered back to challenging Rhea's ideals at the Monsters Incorporated factory:

"… _The only thing we can do is try to leave the World the way it is. We make sure that the balance of light and dark never overlap the other," Rhea had told her._

 _Luna, anger seeping to the surface at Rhea's inaction, walked right up to her face. "Leave the World the way it is? Or are you too afraid to try? ...In each of those places, we did something about it and things got better. That world changed, and I did too. So no, I don't believe just waiting for things to happen will make things better..."_

That feeling then was what she felt now: pride for sticking to her guts. That she had been right all along and Neuge was going out of her way to prove that. The world could be changed, because it was their world after all. Who better to change it than them?

She turned around to see Sora, Helen and Lightning heading towards them. After looking around, a satisfied Lightning looked back to him with little of what could be considered relief or joy on her face, and yet there was nothing equally negative either. Her face was simply an unreadable mask.

"Where'd Enna go?" she asked.

"She went to help evacuate everyone along with Elsa and Anna," Hercules explained. "Wherever these things are coming, we need to find their main source and cut them off. Xanatos can't be allowed to get away with this."

"Or rather than finding out where they're manufactured, how about we just cut Xanatos off. Either one makes our lives easier," Helen said. "Anyway, let's find those three and tell them the good news."

The group headed across the bridge and entered the town to find a giant crowd huddled over by the town square. Enna Kros, who had been standing at the back of this crowd, was most easily accessible to them. Without calling out to them, and almost as if she had sensed them, Enna turned around and smiled.

"Job's done?"

"Piece of cake! Well, if the cake was rock-hard anyway," Luna answered. It took a moment for Elsa to calm and assure everyone that they would be alright before joining up with the group. Sora noticed that if it had not been for the panic, they could have all easily stood out with their different attire. Already, some were giving them strange looks but he thought to look past that and instead to Anna and Elsa.

"Did you get that child back to her parents?" Mulan asked.

Elsa gave nod and smiled. "The father was one of the guards on patrol here. He and his wife thought they had lost her and were completely distraught when I found them with Kristoff."

"Why were Omnidroids here anyway?" Sora asked.

"It was that guy harassing Elsa. Um, David Xanatos… right?" Anna paused to look at Elsa to make sure she had remembered the name correctly. Elsa nodded with a pensive stare and Anna continued. "Yeah, he just came in acting all high and mighty, talking about how she still owed something to KRONOS for helping her to control her powers and sis totally shut him down!"

"And then he brought out the Omnidroids because of it?" Sora pieced the rest together. He folded his arms. "Guess he's not the kind of guy who likes when you say no to him."

"Or he's getting desperate," Hercules said.

"Wouldn't you love for that to be the case…"

That voice… It turned Sora's blood white. Slowly, he turned around to see David Xanatos standing there. Just like that. As if he were a simple man casually passing by, but he was not alone. Next to him stood the masked boy, Nil. Sora could feel a dangerous energy emanating even through his mask, and it was being directed straight at him.

Sora was about to summon his Keyblade but Xanatos raised a finger. "Ah ah ah! You wouldn't want cause a commotion and in the middle of a crowded area no less. Why it would just break my heart to see innocents suffer just because you made a poor decision on the spur of the moment."

"Like you care about hurting innocent people when you set Omnidroids on them in the first place!" Luna yelled.

"But then you came to save them, no? At any rate, it did confirm that you were receiving help from an outside source, Elsa. All of you, together, from so many different walks of life. Now don't tell me you aren't thankful that we brought the world together, Sora," Xanatos said.

" _We_?" Sora gritted his teeth and clenched his fist. "No matter what the outcome of this is, you're sorely mistaken if you think you're getting praise. From anyone."

"You can keep it. The right decisions aren't always the most popular." Xanatos looked towards Nil who opened up a corridor for them both. "I have a surprise for you. It's not ready. Not yet. But I think you're going to love it."

With those words, Xanatos and Nil disappeared. Sora let his fist unclench and looked over to Luna who had looked at him first, albeit anxiously. Xanatos' surprise… it was a worrying thought, but they couldn't linger on it for long.

The group soon teleported back to Corona, Anna included for Elsa still had to look after her kingdom leaving her younger sister to be her representative in her stead. Furthermore, Anna hadn't been trained in performing regal duties and it would have been a poor decision to throw her into the fray without any experience. Accompanying her was a strange snowman by the name of Olaf who had been animated through Elsa's powers. Olaf surviving in hotter weather conditions without melting was also due to this magic.

As they stepped foot in the castle, the group separated, fatigued from taking on the Omnidroids. Sora, Luna and Lightning however immediately headed back for the Treaty Room where Yen Sid and Neuge were waiting for them. After Lightning gave her report of the battle and filled them in on Xanatos and Nil, she left the room. According to Aladdin, she wasn't one to stay in one place for long. This left Sora and Luna to look upon the contemplative stares of Yen Sid and Neuge.

"He would show himself so openly? He knew we wouldn't risk harming the townsfolk just to apprehend him," Yen Sid said with his hands cupped around his mouth. "I fear Xanatos knows the game too well. He knows our weakness, and he exploits it, like any true tactician would."

"And we don't have any cards up our sleeve?" Sora asked. "I'm not going to wait around and let him play with us."

"We don't exactly know his game. For all we know, he could be counting on us… on you to act impetuously, Sora. It's how he got you last time," Neuge said.

"Argh, then what the hell do we do?!" Sora yelled angrily.

"SORA!" Neuge scolded. It was like a disapproving mother calling out her son. Even Luna was surprised and jumped slightly next to him. From there on she spoke lowly. "Showing your frustration is also how Xanatos wins. You want to know how you beat opponents like him? You put yourself in their shoes and think one step ahead. Now that isn't to say it's as simple as that, because if it was we would have outwitted him every single step of the way. The problem for him now is that he once had trickery and deception on his side. Now, he has none. The face behind the mask has finally been revealed and he's lost his advantage," Neuge said.

"Hmph. Listening at your side, you sound like Master Kokan," Yen Sid told her with a smirk of amusement playing on his lips.

"Can it, old man. When you next open your mouth, it better be something actually useful and not a load of garbage," Neuge replied before adopting a calmer expression. "Right now, we only have the three Ventus and Lea brought in to help us. Dr Drakken, Shego and Yzma. In exchange for information they want immunity from punishment-"

"You can't give that to them," Sora cut in.

Neuge smiled impishly. "I know. For all we know, their information could easily be outdated anyway and I wouldn't put it past Xanatos to have already chosen his next location to hide in. Still, their information could prove valuable, especially about this 'surprise' of Xanatos'."

"We'll smoke him out of his hole. Close off every door available to him. We're Keyblade wielders, after all." Luna stepped in with a beam. "If we can open paths then we should be able to close them too."

"I couldn't have said it better myself," Sora said.

"Oh, you kids." Neuge moved in and did something they never thought she'd ever do in a million year. She put her hands on their shoulders and pulled them into a hug. "You're so darned corny but I don't care because I'm so happy to see you again."

"Err…" Luna exchanged a look with Sora before looking back at Neuge again. "Neuge, are you drunk again?"

"No, you idiots. What, I can't be relieved after not knowing where my pupils have been for ten months?" Neuge asked.

"Ten? It's really been that long? Then it's been ten months since this war started too," Sora said. It was hard to believe at first, but then he had to take into account spending three of those months on the Destiny Islands—three which may have been unneeded, but his confidence had shattered completely after Xanatos' deception. He also had no idea just how terrible things had gotten before leaving, only that the stars had gone out and it was only until they met Yeul that they had learned how to bring them back. Ten months also meant that it had been a really long time since he had seen Kairi. Riku, he had met up with not too long after he had left but as for the redhead, Sora could begin to guess where she was. The only way he could assume her safety was that as long as frogs weren't falling from a red sky or something equally supernatural, all seven of the pure lights were safe.

"I'm so glad you're safe, Neuge," Luna said, leaning her head into Neuge's shoulder.

"Luna…" Neuge said. Her hand fell down to where it could rub the tearful girl's back. "You cut your hair. You both did."

"Well, mine's growing back," Sora said. "Um… yeah, this is kinda weird. Can I…"

"No. Shut up and enjoy the moment because it's the only hug you'll ever get from me," Neuge said.

"Ah, okay," Sora said sheepishly. If their teacher was opening up to them like this, even if for the moment, then he probably shouldn't object. It was like she said. These moments were rare, if they ever happened.

After this very long hug, Neuge finally let go and eyed them both with a small smile. "Everyone has a weakness. Just because Xanatos has found ours, that doesn't mean he has none of his own to hide."

Yen Sid nodded. "Indeed. In the days to come we must pool our thoughts and try to ascertain what a man like him wants. No, what he needs. Through finding that will we find the source of our misery. But for now, I would suggest you go and familiarize yourself with your old friends. You may have already noticed, but it's not every day you find them all accessible to you so easily."

Sora nodded at him and turned to leave. After a moment, he stopped and looked back. "Have you heard from Riku or Kairi?"

"Aqua made contact with Kairi some time ago. Freya also went off to aid her in her task," Yen Sid said.

"Freya?" Sora asked.

"The rat who tried to assassinate her," Neuge replied.

"WHAT?" Sora and Luna yelled baffled.

"It was not my decision. Freya believed that she owed Kairi a debt after the assassination attempt and sought to make amends," Yen Sid explained. "And I don't doubt her intentions either. She seems to understand what she did was wrong and is looking to make a difference."

"Yeah. I didn't think too highly of it either at first, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that giving up on someone just because we don't like what they've done before is a terrible way to go at it. It's not at all the system I want in place," Neuge said.

"I… I guess so," Sora said. "And Riku?"

Yen Sid shook his head.

"Right… no stars to tell you that, huh?" Sora muttered before making to leave again. Luna gave Neuge a worried look before following after Sora. As the door closed behind them, Neuge looked back to Yen Sid.

"Didn't want to tell them about Aqua?" she asked.

"That is for Aqua to say when she's ready. She may not be able to wield a Keyblade anymore but that doesn't mean she isn't a master. What she decides to do with that… is up to her," Yen Sid said.

* * *

 _Flashback_

" _Hey, wake up sleepyhead," Kohle said, lightly kicking at his friend's leg._

" _Give me a few minutes, dad. I'll be up in… whenever." Moira stirred for a moment before going back to rest on her side instead._

" _I'm not your dad and whenever's not good enough. You really gonna be late for your own graduation?" Kohle asked. He looked to his other friend sitting on the window sill and shook his head at him. The boy merely gave him a toothy grin and twirled about his short but messy ginger locks._

" _Graduation… graduation? OH DEAR, OUR GRADUATION! I'm up, I'm up!" Moira bounced up from her spot and dashed around the room, opening her wardrobe, grabbing a few clothes to bring them to her mirror._

" _You never change, Moira," the boy sitting on the window sill said. "And who sleeps on the floor anyway? Beds are a thing you know."_

" _Hey, lay of my case, Mat. And sleeping on the floor is a lot more comfortable after the first few nights. Plus, it has additional benefits for being better for your back. I'm not going to end up some old woman with constant back pain," Moira replied. She looked back at two tops in her hand and showed them to Kohle and Mathias. "Hey, which one of these is better?"_

" _They're the same color…? I don't know, just pick one! Women, I swear…" Mathias shook his head with a dismissive look before looking at Kohle. "Er, she isn't serious, right? About the back thing I mean."_

 _Kohle shrugged. "Probably, but if I have to lie so straight that I have to be conscious of it then I'll take bed thanks. No way I'm sleeping on my side on a hard floor."_

" _Urgh, you're both hopeless. Then again, I can't exactly count on boys to have a sense of taste. I need to get my sister in here," Moira said._

" _Hopeless… says the girl who can wake up on time. Right…" Kohle said._

" _Takes one to know one, I guess. It's not exactly easy to get you up sometimes either," Moira shot back._

" _Ah, but that's only when you propose something that's probably going to be incredibly boring, at which I have no worries about not setting alarm clock and sleeping in. You just do it all the time," Kohle said._

" _What can I say? I like my sleep," Moira replied with a grin. She looked at them expectantly for a good few seconds, at which point Kohle stared back at her quizzically. Moira sighed. "You boys want to watch me change or…"_

" _Oh!" Kohle blushed and looked over to Mat, urging him to follow with his head._

" _I mean… I don't exactly mind seeing a girl na-WOAH!" Mat was taken by surprise as Kohle moved and pushed him out of the window. He looked back to Moira and gave a salute._

" _I probably just contributed to his future back problems, didn't I?" Kohle asked. Moira laughed and Kohle grinned at her before hopping out of the window after Mat._

 _End Flashback_

Kohle lifted his open palm to catch the morning air. His attention turned to the lapping waves instead. The sound of water hitting against the shoreline was a familiar one to him. He had been here so many times after all. At one point, some several hundred years ago, Moira had lived here along with her family. Kohle had come here at several points, whether it be waking her up to remind her of something they had to do on that particular day or so that they could go out and have a picnic by the beach.

Nowadays of course, that house was gone. No traces of it remained, and instead a new plot of houses had been built in the area. Kohle could remember exactly where the house was positioned and just before coming to the beach had even scoped it out to see who lived on its land now. The house belonged to an old couple with a lovely garden at the front. He found that particularly amusing due to the fact that he and Moira used to work at a flower shop for part time work while they were at the academy.

Originally, he had thought it best to stay clear from this place, not only because the Lunarians' academy was nearby but because coming here dug up old memories that he would rather have not remembered. But seeing that girl next to Sora again, the girl who bore a resemblance to Moira—Luna… when he had last seen her, he hadn't thought too much of it. The chaos and adrenaline of their fight on the Destiny Islands had made it hard to think of those things and if he were being completely honest, he had never really taken the time to look at Luna's face until their meeting at Alexander Palace.

Though there were some distinct differences, the shade of hair and color of her eyes being one of them, he doubted there was a coincidence. Unlike his body however, his memories were not immortal. For seven hundred years, he forgot things. Little details like the shape and length of her nose, the width of her chin—they all faded with time to the point where he could only see her by taking the features he remembered of her and pasting them onto Luna.

"Moira, could you have survived somehow?" Kohle whispered.

"Interesting conundrum, isn't it?"

Kohle turned around to see a two-foot tall creature walking up to him, her hands behind her back and a keen smile on her face. She stopped a few feet away from him and the two stared at each other, though only one seemed really concerned with trying to discern the intentions of the other. Finally, Kohle took a few steps to close the gap.

"Do I know you?" Kohle asked.

"No, but I know you. To think you would come here under morning's dew. I've been looking for you, guardian of Kingdom Hearts," said the Tarutaru.

Kohle frowned and backed away. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh, please, immortality? And where did you get a little trick like that? Your nearby convenience store? Spare me the excuses, I've heard them all and all of them a bore."

"Okay then. I'm immortal. My body regenerates at an accelerated rate. Does that scare you?" Kohle asked.

"Scare me? O-hohohohohoho! I didn't know you were a comedian too. Well then, shall we make something useful out of the eldritch body of yours then?" the creature pivoted on one foot and began walking away.

"Hey, you usually reciprocate introductions! And where are we going anyway? Hello?" Kohle called out. He let out a frustrated sigh before following after her.

* * *

 ** _The Swan's Lake Tavern, Kingdom of Corona_**

"So you find a cave full of treasure and you still go out on adventures anyway? Seems pretty pointless and risky to me," Hercules said. A few of the Wayfinders, Sora and Luna had all gathered in one of Corona's taverns. Sandwiches and hot drinks had been offered to them courtesy of Rapunzel.

"In my defence, anything that belongs in that cave stays in that cave, with a few exceptions. I wasn't going to get anything else out of that cursed cave," Aladdin said. "And while I can't say I'm not enjoying the palace life, the world outside it is my true home. It's always been that way. Even though Jasmine and I are married now, I still make time to see what's out there when I can."

"So a magic genie, dragons, gods…" Olaf said, pointing from Aladdin to Mulan to Hercules before touching myself. "Oh, and I'm a snowman!"

"I'm not too sure I'd put you in the same category as those others," Anna said with a chuckle.

"You heard from Cassim and Iago lately?" Sora asked Aladdin.

"Dad sends a letter every month describing all these amazing places. You know how hard it is trying to resist going back into all of that? I have duties now! Ask me what that was a few years ago and I'd have had no idea what you were talking about."

Luna suddenly chortled. "The image of Jasmine having you on a leash just popped into my head. I'm sorry."

"Would you like a doggy treat with that?" Hercules teased to the laughter of those around the table.

"Hey, don't be too quick to jump on the banter bandwagon, Herc. It's probably the same for Meg and you as well," Sora said. Luna buried her face into her arms at this.

Herc smiled and leaned in. "Well, here's a little tip from hero to hero. You always need someone to keep you in check from going too far, you know."

"Hey, I see what you did there, don't change the subject!" Sora called out.

"So where have you two been all this time?" Mulan asked. It had been why Sora and Luna had agreed to come with them after all, so they talked about the pieces of heart that fallen from Kingdom Hearts and their mission to reclaim them for their rightful owner. By the time they were finished, Mulan and the others looked as if they had barely even breathed since the start.

Eventually, Helen tapped the desk rhythmically and whistled. "Wow. That's a lot of heavy stuff to take in. I won't lie either, some of it went well over my head, but I understand the gist. I didn't realize until recently how much of our lives are affected by what we can't see. Like, seriously, a giant heart in the sky? Sounds more like an omen than hopeful."

"Did Bob not come with you, Helen?" Luna asked.

"Well, since he went off on his own last time without telling me, I decided it was my turn and that he could stay and look after the kids. The difference here being that I actually didn't hide my intentions from him and the kids," Helen said. "Bob has a friend by the name of Lucius, or Frozone if we're going to use his alias. He's a backup if we ever need one."

"You might as well bring Bob too. School won't matter if the world gets destroyed," Hercules said.

"Well for what we have now, it's not something I can't handle without their help," Helen said. "Plus I have you, you big strong hunk of a man."

"I thought you were married," Herc said.

"I won't tell if you don't," Helen replied in a low voice.

Olaf looked back and forth between them before covering his eyes. "Well this just became something more than PG. Should I be watching this?"

"But then you'll miss the good stuff, kupo," a narrow-eyed Kupopo said with a disconcerting voice.

"Don't traumatize him," Sora said, rolling his eyes. "Anyway, now you understand what we have to do. We can't stay for long."

"I understand but… isn't there any way we can help?" Ariel asked. "I came here on behalf of my father but I really do wish I could do something more if the situation's so serious."

Sora smiled at Ariel and took her hand into his. "Hey, don't fuss over it. Luna and I are going to do our best to get these things as quickly as possible. Besides, I'd probably never hear the end of it from your father if you got hurt… buuuuuuttt if you really wanna help us, you can try taking cooking lessons."

"What does that mean?" Ariel asked withdrawing her hand.

"All I'm saying is that when I came around last time and you personally offered to cook for me, Donald and Goofy, it tasted more like something Pluto would eat than a person," Sora said. "When not even Goofy can say nice things about it, you know you've done wrong."

Ariel scoffed and looked away. "Well, I'll have you know that since then I have taken lessons. With some of the cooking books I found in the library. Though, I may have interpreted a few things wrong since I don't yet fully understand some of the symbols humans use in their writing. A-and I can't exactly say I've gotten anyone to really try them. Eric strangely keeps putting it off and daddy, well, he comes to the surface every once in a while and I do offer him some but then he says he has important matters to take care off back at the palace and leaves."

"Yeah, I really wonder why," Sora muttered under his breath.

"Can any one of us around this table even cook anyway?" Herc asked.

"Hey!" Helen pointed at herself and Hercules quickly apologized.

"Probably better than Hercules anyway," Mulan said, lifting her cup up with both hands to sip her tea. Seeing this, Hercules grinned and shook his head.

"Well at least I know how to drink tea," Hercules said. He took his own cup and in one go completely downed it before anyone could stop him. The entire table stared on in shock and surprise as a pained expression overtook Hercules' face. A loud shrill cry rang out in the tavern, causing the other customers to look their way. Hercules bit on his tongue and was about to slam his fist on the table, only to refrain when he realized that his unbridled strength could easily destroy the table. Instead, he darted towards the counter where there was a jug of water present. As he downed this on himself a second time, Mulan looked back to the group.

"Well he sure showed me," she said. A chorus of laughter followed and within it, Sora's laughter turned to a smile as he admired the faces of his friends. If Xanatos knew his weaknesses, then he would use every trick in the book against him, including his friends. If he wanted to beat Xanatos then the key wasn't pushing those friends away to protect them. It seemed like the easiest solution, but Sora knew that it wasn't the right one. He wasn't going to run away from them, but embrace them. They were what had made him into who he was today after all.

* * *

 ** _Later that evening..._**

 ** _Girls' Bedroom, Castle Corona_**

"Hmm? What are you doing?" a curious Snow White asked, peering over Eleftheria's shoulders as she typed furiously on her laptop's keyboard.

"Err, I'm on my laptop?" Eleftheria asked.

"A lap… top?" Snow White asked. She looked down at the screen with her mouth open. "Is this a window of some kind?"

"Err, yes but I think the window you're thinking of and the one I'm thinking of are two completely different things," Eleftheria said. She was clearly not comfortable with Snow White invading her personal space, but perhaps more shocking to her was that she had met someone who didn't know what a laptop was. Snow White, of course, wasn't the only one in the room who had never heard such a thing. Other than Luna, Celes and Helen, none of the other girls had ever seen a laptop, or any type of electronic for that matter, in their life.

"This is really weird. It's hard to think there's someone who's never seen a computer before," Celes said.

"That probably has to do with the way the worlds were separated after the Keyblade War actually. All the worlds marched to their own tune when it came to time and some of them advanced more than others," Luna explained the disparity.

"That will be… bothersome when it comes to trying to establish a new system," Celes said. "If we introduce things too quickly, it might be too much in too short a time for the residents of those developing locales to acclimate properly."

"So you think it should happen naturally? No matter how long it takes?" Luna asked.

"No, I don't think that either. We should encourage it, but not force it," Celes replied. "Like most of these things, they need to be implemented over time, and it may not even be within our lifetime, but I do believe that an even more connected world than the one we have no can be achieved."

Luna beamed at this. "Wow, Celes. You've really grasped this whole thing so quickly. I think you might even understand it better than me at this point."

"I doubt it. It's probably just because you have a lot of things on your mind that you probably haven't had the time to think about it," Celes said. She gave Luna a sad smile. "I truly wish I could shoulder your burden. It must be hard for just the two of you."

"Well, at least it's not just me or not just Sora. We have each other so it really isn't all that bad," Luna said. She looked over to Eleftheria's laptop and the large paragraph of words on the screen. "You've already figured out how you're going to get your articles out there, Eleftheria?"

"Yep. Not really too much to it either. All you need is a magic fairy and six princesses willing to help out. My first article is gonna knock some socks off for sure. The headline's gonna be pretty eye-catching too," Eleftheria said.

Luna walked over to her bed and leaned in to read the bolded words at the top: "You are not alone. Hah. Sends shivers right down my spine."

"Right? Right? Hehe, let there be wet stains on pants everywhere once they read this!" Eleftheria declared.

"I don't want to imagine that," Luna said.

"You know. I've never really had something like this before, being locked away in a tower and all. It's like having a sleepover between just us girls," Rapunzel said.

"No boys to get in the way either. We could discuss just about anything," Helen said. "For example… what kind of guy do you like, Alice?"

"Of all the people to choose, why me? M-maybe we should ask someone with a bit more expertise in the matter," Alice said. "Like Belle for instance."

"Oh, good idea. Tell us, Belle. Did you prefer your husband with more hair or less?" Cinderella asked to the snickers of those who understood what she was talking about.

Belle blushed furiously but stood her ground. "Well, I'd have preferred him just about any way he looked. It's all about the beauty within."

"She's not wrong. It's all down to aesthetics though. Different people are attracted to different things," Eleftheria said, her fingers not having once left the keyboard since she had started. Occasionally she would pause for a moment as she thought of what to write next or a better way of wording something and then her fingers were back to moving again. "I for one am attracted to intelligence but some might put that lower on their list of priorities. It's totally possible for brawn to come before brains."

"Well, I prefer a guy who's a good cook and good at domestic cleaning. I would at least want to relax my feet every once in a while," Aurora said. She placed her hands behind her head against the bedrest and nodded her head in the direction of the wall behind her. "Which one of them do you think would be the best cook?"

"Adam, probably. Even though we have cooks, he enjoys going down to the kitchen to help them with things," Belle said.

"Yeah, most of you have servants anyway. You're all spoiled," Helen said. "That said, I wouldn't mind someone else cooking for me every once in a while. Bob's a bit too strong to trust him around the kitchen."

"Well thank goodness for free hospitality then. Rapunzel, you and your parents have been doing a fantastic job," Cinderella said.

"Right, I hope we're not too much of a bother," Jasmine added.

"It really isn't. After not having seen me since I was born, I think my parents just want to make up for all those missing years. They were all for it when I told them you were all friends who needed a place to stay and that the kingdom was in danger if we didn't do something to help," Rapunzel told them.

"We really have to do something for you guys after this is all said and done. Maybe hold another lantern festival? I really loved seeing that and you guys would love it as well," Luna suggested. "Everyone in the town takes these lanterns and throws them up in the air at the same time. It's like the sky is on fire."

"Well, when you put it like that, it definitely sounds romantic," Ariel said.

"Hey, you know what me and my friends used to do for sleepovers? It was kind of cheating but…" Helen's arm stretched forward to Aurora and grabbed a pillow next to her before hitting Luna.

"Ow! Okay, payback time! Celes, get ready!" Luna yelled, reaching for a pillow herself. A one-on-one fight soon turned into a group fight as most of the girls grabbed the pillows from their beds to attack or defend themselves with. This all being with the exception of Eleftheria who grumbled in annoyance and moved to crawl up in a corner of the room to continue her work.

Outside their room, Lightning had stopped just short of their room upon hearing their laughter. Her hand wrapped around the doorknob as she considered for a moment going in. She let out a small sigh of disappointment and let go off the doorknob, continuing on instead down the corridor.

The rest of the day passed quickly. Sora, who had woken up earlier than usual had decided to use the early morning to visit Yeul. As always, even her voice was enough to soothe the rapid waters that contained his thoughts. Sora had been thinking it since his encounter with Xanatos but it had taken Yeul to put it into perspective for him.

"Sora, it may be a big risk but I think that now is perfect time for risks. Even though you've done well in gathering others that might aid you in your quest, I don't want you to take this the wrong way but if you hope to take back Radiant Garden, going with just them against Keyblade wielders and magic users is not a good idea. You have to get in contact with Moira's Crescent," Yeul told him towards the end of their conversation.

"I know. I'm just not sure if they'll listen or not. Rhea's one of the more reasonable ones in that group, so if there's anyone I have a chance of convincing, it's her. I just hope the others don't jump at the chance to lynch me before I can reach her," Sora said. "But where do I even begin to look for them?"

"I had a vision recently, which is why I brought them up. I saw something like a building collapsing in on itself and then the scenery switched completely to a cathedral with its grand bells ringing and across the river from it a large mansion where I saw them—seven and two missing. Unfortunately I couldn't tell much else like where they were exactly, but hopefully it might be of some use to you."

Sora put a hand over his mouth as he thought back on Yeul's vision. Based on just the cathedral alone, it could have been absolutely anywhere, but he had only ever been to one cathedral and its bells had certainly left the most impression on him out of all its features. Scouting out a mansion from its rooftops wouldn't be too hard a task either.

Eventually he dropped his hand and looked down to his crown necklace around her neck before smiling. "Yeah, that definitely helped. Thanks, Yeul."

The moment he left the Perpetual Divergence, he quietly slipped back into the boys' room and gathered his things. There wasn't much he needed to take, save for a few clothes which he stored in a backpack he had bought in Alexander. He quietly shut the door and was about to head to the girls' room for Luna when he stopped to reconsider halfway. If he was going to Moira's Crescent then he doubted Luna would let him go without taking her along. If this was a mistake he was about to make then he didn't want to drag her into it.

He made it towards the castle front entrance when he heard a deliberately loud clearing of the throat behind him. Sora lackadaisically spun on his heel to face Neuge.

"There's always one, isn't there?" he murmured.

"And where are you off to this early?" his teacher asked.

"I think you know as well as I do that what we have here isn't enough to take back Radiant Garden. Even if we have Terra, Ven, Aqua and Mickey, they aren't enough. I have an idea where Moira's Crescent might be so I'm going to get them to help," Sora said.

"Get them to help? Sora, they tried to-"

"Kill me, I know," Sora finished. He watched Neuge's face soften before continuing. "After being used and manipulated by Xanatos, and being chased by Moira's Crescent, I was terrified. Terrified of jumping back into the world only to accidentally screw up again. But back on the islands, I spent a long time thinking about what I want out of life. So much time running away and waiting, time that could have easily been put elsewhere and it may have resulted something good, or maybe something bad, but at least it would be different. At least I would have tried. So that was the answer I found, and I'm sticking to it. Even if I am still afraid, I'll keep walking and hope that with each step that fear lessens."

"Fear… it's a weapon that can be used both in your favor and against you. Don't let them use it against you. You might not be able to be rid of that fear, but you can conquer it. Just as shadows thrive in the presence of light, so too can courage from fear. That will be your weapon. It's always been your weapon, Sora," Neuge said. She walked towards him and reached out, delivering a fist bump to his shoulder. "You're not bringing Luna at least?"

Sora shook his head. "The sooner we take care of these heart pieces the better. We can't let Horus get any more of them. Just help her with whatever she needs, okay? Oh, and there's also a girl by the name of Merida. She's queen of a kingdom called DunBroch but she might also be able to help us."

"I'll have Enna Kros find her," Neuge said.

Sora nodded and was about to turn only to look back to her instead with an embarrassed smile. "Err, this is gonna seem really silly but… I have no idea how to get there."

Neuge's shoulders drooped slightly and she placed a hand on her forehead. "Whatever will I do with you kids? You do know you can use corridors of light to travel, don't you?"

Sora was about to tell her he didn't have any armor to travel through safely only to remember that the worlds were actually connected now. Rather than admitting his own forgetfulness aloud, he mentally slapped himself and summoned the Keyblade, opening up a pathway in front of him.

"Don't start the fireworks without me," a grinning Sora said as he ran into the portal.


	45. The Magician by the Seine

Chapter 44

The Magician by the Seine

"We'll miss you, Aqua. It's been a ton of fun," Lilo said as she, Stitch and Nani stood by the doorway to see their guest off.

"Same here. I'll try to come back soon. You have too good a taste in music for me not to," Aqua replied. She had spent the evening in Lilo's room after dinner listening and, what she would probably never admit to Terra and Ven, dancing to her music. At the start and mostly due to her shyness, she had been pretty poor at dancing. As Lilo and Stitch led by the example, she slowly began to relax and let the flow of the song's rhythm guide her. In all, it had been a stressful experience gradually turned therapeutic.

"Does Aqua have to go?" Stitch, who was in Lilo's arms, enunciated each word slowly. Through a combination of being taught by Lilo and picking up on words simply by listening, Stitch had become fairly competent at the language.

Aqua gave him a heartfelt smile. "Unfortunately I do. I can't say I'm not still terrified about getting back out there but my other friends need me. Lea was right. I can't stay here feeling sorry for myself. There are others suffering much worse than me right now."

"Always… find home here," Stitch said. Aqua grinned at this and wiped away her watery eyes before turning away.

"Thank you," she said again before walking away. It took a lot of strength for her to walk away from them instead of running back and crying that she didn't want to leave. To live such a simple life… she hoped one day she could live like that too.

"You all set? You haven't left anything?" Lea asked. He had been waiting for her along the path.

Aqua gave one last look at the beach and its sparkling blue waters before looking at Lea. "I've left only what I don't need. Lea, could you take me somewhere before going back to Middleton?"

"Another stop, huh?"

"It'll be the last one," Aqua said. Her steadfast determination spoke more words than Aqua ever needed to for Lea, who didn't object or even let out some sort of annoyed sigh but simply nodded upon seeing this reinvigorated Aqua.

As they came out on the other side of the corridor Lea had created, Aqua's mouth parted slightly at seeing the shrine of her deceased master. They were on a grassy plain not too far from her old academy, which was just beyond the mountains in front of them. She wasn't interested in the academy however, but to a strange triangular formation created by three rocks not too far away. The gentle breeze drifted past her and tickled the grass as if pointing her in the direction she needed to be. She reached these rocks and in the middle of them, the Keyblade she was after—the Keyblade that had once belonged to her teacher.

"I wanted to return this to you after I rescued Terra and Ven. It was, and still is, yours," Aqua said in a low voice as she took hold of the handle. "I never thought I would have to use you again. I thought mine was enough, but here we are. Please… lend me your strength so I can keep my friends safe."

She pulled the Master's Defender out of the ground and felt a warm sensation spreading through her fingertips. It had accepted her, welcoming her into its heart like a family member who hadn't seen their loved one in a while.

Aqua let the Keyblade disappear in her hands and she looked back at Lea. "It's not as powerful as my own Keyblade. I can sense its light fading. Still, it's better than nothing."

* * *

Rain—cold, pelting and merciless, poured down on Sora the moment he emerged from the corridor of light. It was a startling contrast from the artsy orange and red of Corona's dawn. The gray skies promised no hope for Sora, but he pushed on regardless hoping that he would leave his destination to much warmer climates.

He made his way out of the empty street to the grounds outside Notre Dame Cathedral and proceeded into the building through the façade. He made his way up to the south tower and knocked on the door. While he waited, he turned around to look at the buildings surrounding the cathedral. With no keen eye for distinction and no experience to Parisian life, he couldn't discern one building from the next. Yeul's tip about the house being across the river also wasn't as helpful as he would have liked it to be. That much became clear when he realized he was on an island situated in between two parts of the city, both with many residences all weaved and connecting together like an intricate puzzle, or so it seemed in his mind. He certainly could make neither heads nor tails of it all.

He heard the door open behind him and a short and hunched over man stepped out briefly. He extended his hand to feel the drops of water roll across his arm. He looked down at Sora and beckoned for him to come. In this weather, Sora was hasty with following Quasimodo's call and he soon found himself in a dry room that didn't feel quite dry until he took his jacket off.

"Thanks, Quasi. You still live here?" Sora asked as he looked up at the bells above him.

"Someone has to look after the bells, and I do enjoy my job," Quasimodo said.

"You forgot the part where us lovable sidekicks would be left all alone," Hugo said.

"I'm afraid we've been replaced, both then and now," Victor replied calmly.

"Hey, hey, no breaking the fourth wall!" Laverne yelled, pushing them both aside.

"How's life treating you, Quasi? No problems since the antidote?" Sora asked.

Quasimodo shook his head. "I've been doing quite well. A while back I felt moment of confusion, like my mind was murky, but those moments have passed now, with the help of Esmeralda and Phoebus."

"Still, we've been telling him it can't just be those two alone. Esmeralda's expecting a child soon," Laverne said.

"Wow. Really? That's great! Give my best to her and Phoebus," Sora said.

"Right, right, but the point is that with a baby on the way, it's not like Phoebus and Esmeralda will have as much time as before to pop in. What he needs is someone who can stay by his side and care for him… like a girlfriend!" Hugo exclaimed.

"Oh no, I doubt anyone could ever love someone like me," Quasimodo said, demurely looking down at his own feet.

Sora sighed and folded his arms. "You know, they usually say that half the battle in getting a woman to like you is through having confidence. It's why you can't just stay cooped up in here all day. You need to go out and see things. Talk to other people, no matter how scary it may be."

"He's right. And some women even like the overconfident types and let me tell you, those are the ones not worth sticking around for," Hugo said through his teeth.

"Sounds like personal experience," Sora quipped before remembering what he had come here for. "Anyway, as unfortunate as it is, you weren't the one I came to see, Quasi. I'm looking for a group of people that might be able to help. The only clue I have to find them though is that they're in a big house or mansion and that it's across the river from the cathedral. Have any idea where I should be looking?"

"Well, this cathedral is built on an island on the seine, separating different parts of the city. While that isn't much to go on, you mentioned mansions? Well, the majority of nobles live on the bank north of the river in an area called Le Marais. It's not too far from here either. Just take one of the bridges leading to the north bank and you're already there," Quasimodo said.

"Oh, that easy, huh? Thanks-" Sora said but Quasimodo immediately cut him off.

"You still have a lot of houses to cover though, unless you know which one you're looking for specifically."

Sora contemplated this with a hand to his chin. "Well… how long would it take to cover every house in the area?"

"You're actually thinking of doing it?" Quasimodo asked.

"Well what else am I supposed to do? I've certainly got nothing to narrow down the search!" Sora snapped. He closed his eyes and listened to the sound of rain falling on the roof of the tower for a moment. "Maybe… I could lure them out to me instead… somehow… YEAH! I GOT IT!"

His declaration was so loud and sudden, Quasimodo who was near him jumped about a few good inches in the air before landing back down.

"Was that n-necessary? Quasimodo asked.

Sora looked to him and grinned. "It's always necessary."

* * *

"You're letting him go alone?"

It wasn't long after Luna had woken up before she had heard from Neuge about Sora's decision to leave her behind. She had always expected something like this. She had been trying to convince him to try to talk with Moira's Crescent for a while before he finally admitted as much back in Gravity Falls. What she wasn't happy about was that he had decided to do it on his own.

"See? He knew you'd act like this," Neuge said.

"Of course I'll act like this! Grr, if Moira's Crescent haven't somehow kicked his ass by now, I'll do it instead when he gets back!" Luna hissed angrily before returning to her normal voice. "How could he even do something like this? After everything we've been through, shouldn't he know doing things on his own isn't the only way. Even if he didn't want to bring me, bring someone else."

"It's his answer and if he truly believes in it, he'll come out okay. That boy has pulled off some miraculous things. I say let him work his magic," Neuge said. She seemed wholly unconcerned but it probably wasn't very accurate to say she actually was. Luna was sure that Neuge worried, but her faith and trust in him dispelled whatever notions of fear were in the back of her mind. Luna, on the other hand, was afraid, but her anger at Sora seemed to conceal that fear well. Neuge looked back at her. "He asked me to tell you to keep looking for the pieces of heart in the meantime. It's not like he distrusts you. He did leave you with an important mission after all."

"R-right…" Luna said. Her anger was abating and she just hoped it didn't expose how nervous she was with being left such a task to accomplish by herself. She walked back to her room with her eyes on the carpet in front of her. She stopped at a secluded area and called for Artemis.

"Don't worry, I was listening," Artemis confirmed after appearing right in front of Luna. "I've been looking into it. Any seismic activity or people acting strangely… I've been trying to look into all sorts of things. I may have found two."

"Really? And how long were you planning on keeping this from us?" Luna asked.

"Chill, girl. For one thing I never really found a good time to tell you. Also it's kind of hard sending the information that my physical self has learned into my spiritual self in your Keyblade," Artemis explained.

"You're right. Sorry," Luna apologized.

"Nah, it's no big deal. Anyway, the first one I actually wasn't sure about for a while, but after comparing it to the second one, I've realized they're pretty similar. The problem is it's… kind of weird."

"Weird? I mean, that what you were looking for, right?" Luna asked.

"Yes, but… okay, the first time I noticed it was when we were on the ship heading towards Treasure Planet. I felt really jittery for some reason. I shook it off at first but then when you were near that Sarah girl, I felt the same thing coming from that games console in her hand," Artemis explained.

"Huh. That's… pretty weird actually," Luna said with a ponderous look. She soon looked back at Artemis and smiled. "So what? You think the heart piece is inside her… handheld?"

"I would need to be next to it again to be certain but it definitely felt familiar. Then there's the second piece of heart. It's somewhere I think you've been to before," Artemis said.

* * *

Cruella De Vil held up the last metallic ball on the right with her hand before letting go. The right-most ball fell back and struck the other four balls, however only the left-most ball swung upwards before heading back to strike the other four balls, thus lifting only the right-most one up again. This incredibly amusing and addictive act of manipulating momentum and kinetic energy repeated back and forth until Cruella caught the metal sphere that was swinging with her hand. This time she was about to grab two of the spheres when the door to her jail cell slid open. The screech caused her to jump and she jerked at the Newton's Cradle device hard, causing all five balls to fall onto the cold hard floor.

"Get up, inmate. You're being released on parole for good behavior," the guard who stood by her door said. Cruella smiled and walked through the door, following the guard down corridor and past other offenders. As they all looked towards them, Cruella merely kept her eyes front and smiled as she walked. She soon arrived at correctional officer's room and took a seat at his desk.

"Well, the papers have all been filed and sent to appropriate departments. You're free, Miss De Vil," said the officer.

"Thank you so much. I really do owe it all to you and the guards here for keeping me on the right path. I couldn't have done it without you," Cruella said with a sad smile.

"Well, I do like to think we do our job properly. I said when we started that I was going to rehabilitate you and put you back into society a better person and I meant it," the officer replied.

"And I do feel different, I really do. I have so many regrets in life, so many missteps where my actions were spurred on merely by impulse, but as you've rightly said to me, the important thing is to keep my chin held high and do my best to make up for them," Cruella said.

"That's what I like to here. We'll of course be checking up on you periodically but that's standard procedure." The officer stood up and held out his hand. "I hope you'll have a very productive life from here on out."

Cruella smiled and shook his hand. A few minutes later, she was standing outside of the prison watching as the bus pulled up to take her back into town. The doors opened and the bus driver, a female guard she had encountered many times, gestured for Cruella to come on board.

"So what's the first thing you're doing when you get back?" she asked as she pulled away from the prison. "It's just that I usually ask people like you coming out of their sentence about the first thing they'll do with their new-found freedom. I like trying understand people, trying to discern motives or intentions. It's why I joined up as a guard."

"That sounds more like an interrogator or detective to me," Cruella said. She looked out of the window to see blurs of green pine trees flashing by.

"Well, I prefer believing in people rather than doubting them and that does mean believing that people can be rehabilitated," the guard answered.

"You really are a pure soul, but I'll answer your question. I'll probably get something actually filling and tasty to eat," Cruella said.

"A model answer. I'll stop by a burger joint and grab you something, shall I?"

"Oh, no dear. I'm a vegan now. I'll take something healthier," Cruella said, leaning her head against the window. "Aside from that, there's something else I need to do. Someone I need to see. One my many regrets, you'll understand. I just truly wish to make amends with them."

After stopping at a salad bar, the guard and Cruella continued their journey. 55 miles later, they arrived at her house which, although grand in its size, had also never seemed so lonely than it did now. Cruella stepped out from the bus onto the pavement and first noticed that the usually cut and even grass in front of her house was tall and unkempt. She said her goodbyes to the guard and entered the house. Most objects of value had been taken possession of and the things that hadn't had probably been stolen by hoodlums. This left her house in a bare-bones condition, stripping the house of any identity it once reflected of its owner.

A day soon passed where Cruella found herself comfortably settling back in to everyday life. It was the evening when she rapped quickly on the door of the one she had sought forgiveness for. After a while, the door opened and Cruella smiled.

"Anita darling, it's so good to see you again."

Anita stared wide-eyed for a moment and then became cross-eyed, fainting shortly afterwards.

* * *

Before Luna could go gallivanting into the unknown, Rapunzel made sure she wouldn't leave without a full stomach. A dish of boiled potatoes which seemed to melt in Luna's mouth due to its buttery texture, accompanied by boar meat, gathered from boar living in the forests near the town, thyme, cherry tomatoes and a glass of milk were given to her to eat beforehand. She was particularly hesitant about the boar meat because she had never eaten boar before but after seeing Rapunzel take a bite, she invited herself to what she found to be a nutty and rich flavor. As for the milk, Luna assumed it was supposed to be a funny joke by Rapunzel because of her height. She was right.

After the meal, Luna was ready to leave. Whatever anger and hurt had been with her in the morning had long since disappeared thanks to a delicious meal. For that, Luna was glad she had Rapunzel convince her to stay a while longer.

"Luna."

The short-haired brunette turned to see Neuge walking up to her, wearing a white sleeveless blazer over a blue tank top and light blue jeans that ended just above her ankles. Next to her was Eleftheria wearing a cream shawl collar sweater and a darker shade of blue jeans.

"Are you going on a date?" Luna asked.

"Oh, please, you think I'd go to so much trouble to prepare just for a date? I've decided, with permission from Commander Farron, that I'm going with you," Neuge said. Luna expressed surprise at this before attempting to cover up her joy.

"You had to ask permission? I never thought you to be the subservient type, master," Luna said, playing it off coolly.

"Huh. Okay, you're right. I won't come then-"

"No, no, that's okay. This will be pretty weird but it'll be nice working with you," Luna said, reverting quickly to a sheepish grin.

"Well if the situation is as important as you guys make it out to be, then it never hurts to have an extra hand. Don't be nervous. This isn't an evaluation. Also, this lovely girl will be coming with us. As if we didn't have enough worries on our shoulders," Neuge said.

"Was this… Lightning's orders as well?" Luna asked.

"You bet! How else am I supposed to report things if I don't experience them first hand? Sure I could just get you guys to come and report everything to me so I can write it but that is so amateur. My mom didn't shy away when it came to reporting and neither will I," Eleftheria said.

"Well, false equivalency, I'm afraid. Your mom probably didn't encounter terrifying monsters and a bunch of selfish a-holes chasing after the light, though I understand how one could conflict the two," Neuge said.

"Don't worry, I'll do my best to stay out of your way. I'm pretty good at being invisible to others," Eleftheria said with a smile.

"I don't know whether to be happy about that or sympathetic," Luna said. "But… how are we going to get there anyway?"

"Another one, eh? That Gummi Ship had spoiled you, I swear. Well, don't look at me, I have no idea where this place of yours is," Neuge said.

Suddenly, Dream Seeker appeared in Luna's hand and pointed forward on its own accord, opening up a corridor for them.

"Oh. Thanks, Artemis," Luna said.

"Artemis? Then I suppose you've found your Keyblade's true name," Neuge said.

Luna held the Keyblade out horizontally in front of her and glanced up and down its length. "To be honest, I'm not even really sure that's its name. Artemis is one of the gods from up on Olympus. A part of her somehow found herself attached to my Keyblade. She probably wasn't the person that was used to create Dream Seeker though."

"Well, if she's a god you think she can tell the rest of them to get off their asses and help us already?" Neuge asked.

"I don't think gods are allowed to interfere with the mortal world, at least not directly. That's what Artemis told me before," Luna said.

"Figures. Anyway, let's get going. I'm interested to know what this heart piece looks like," Neuge said.

As she watched Luna and Neuge disappear through the corridor, Eleftheria let out a silly smile which didn't seem to know whether it was confused or outright petrified at what she was hearing.

"This is all over your head, Eleftheria. Don't think about it too much," she said to herself, closing her eyes as she ran in after them.

* * *

Though the rain had stopped by the afternoon, Sora couldn't be sure as to if or when it would come back. The lingering gray skies forced him to rethink his strategy since coming here. He would have to act quick, and in a big way at that. It was during the rainy morning that he devised a plan to attract the most amount of attention. This, he hoped would draw them to him.

"Come one, come all to Sora's er… supernatural spectacle. Here I will blow your mind with tricks the likes of which you have never seen," Sora yelled in the middle of the crowds as people walked by him. He tried not to think too much about how much of an idiot who was making of himself and instead thought towards his goal.

He summoned his Keyblade, causing a whole bunch of people to gasp. The simplest trick of course, but that was just the start. He needed to keep the crowds coming. Over the course of the next few minutes, Sora went about casting simple magic into the air so as not to hurt any bystanders. He cast a sphere of fire into the air and then mixed it with crackling electricity. Shooting of beam of light out of his Keyblade, the beam hit the sphere and caused it to burst into many tiny embers that flew about in the air. He swirled his Keyblade about, casting Aeroga as a giant net over the street. The embers were sucked into this whirlpool of wind before scattering, appearing as tiny red dots that seemed to create an image of a spiral galaxy.

"And for the pièce de résistance…" Sora announced before casting Blizzard. Snowflakes popped up within the man-made ember galaxy and broke apart. As the wind dissipated, flecks of blue and red floated downwards. Sora swung his Keyblade through the air and the specks turned into red and blue confetti which rained down on the crowd.

"W-w-what in the world? I-is this witchcraft?"

"But that's magic right? That's really magic?"

"Maybe Claude Frollo was right. Maybe he's a gypsy."

"WOAH! You gotta teach us how to do that. That was so cool!"

 _A gypsy? Witchcraft? Oh boy, please let them come before my head gets chopped off,_ Sora thought.

"And there's more where that came from. Spread the word of the great magician Sora's feats. Tell your family, your friends, potentially any new people who you haven't seen until recently and happen to live in a fancy mansion… and preferably before the rain comes back," Sora said.

Minutes flew by as Sora went from performing magic to Grandstander with a ball that a few children had brought with them. At one point, he even got bored whacking the ball with his Keyblade, lay down and began kicking at the air with his shoes, shooting out gusts of wind that kept the ball in the air.

A shrill scream dropped his concentration and he looked up, the ball dropping back on to the ground and bouncing back over to its original owners. He watched as Wraith descended the street, jumping from wall to wall as they headed towards Sora.

"EVERYONE RUN!" Sora yelled, swatting furiously through the air. One of the Wraiths flew towards him just as Sora held up his Keyblade to guard. As the Wraith's broken key came in contact with his own, Sora grabbed the Wraith by the arm and spun, throwing it into the nearby wall next to him.

Sora ducked underneath a key as another Wraith came at him and swung the Kingdom Key upwards, cutting into its back. The third of the creatures seemed to pick up its pace, transitioning from a slow walk and dragging of its key behind it into a run. Sora ran towards it as well and raised his Keyblade, meeting the broken key as he ran past the Wraith. He quickly turned and clashed weapons with it numerous times.

Noticing the other Wraith he had struck about to swing at him, Sora backed out of the deadlock and swatted with his unoccupied wrist, casting Thundaga. Four lightning strikes hit the ground which Sora combined by next casting Magnega in the center of them. Sora jumped onto one of the market stalls in the area and Strike Raided the Magnega Storm, causing it to explode and take out the nearby Wraith.

He was about to declare victory when another Wraith that he hadn't seen dropped down from the building above to strike him in his left shoulder. Sora gasped and fell off the stall, hitting the ground with his right arm first.

He summoned his Keyblade back to him and tried to hold it up to fend against an attack, but the Wraith landed right by him instead and delivered a kick straight to Sora's ribs, lifting him over and onto his stomach. He desperately tried to crawl back up from the ground, all the while gasping for air but the Wraith grabbed him by the feet and dragged him across the ground. He turned round best he could and aimed his Keyblade at the Wraith's head, shooting several fire projectiles at its head. The Wraith's head jerked back and forth as it was hit but otherwise seemed unaffected. Sora made instead to go for the legs when white flame engulfed the Wraith, causing it to drop Sora and thrash about wildly. The sound of a long exhale followed as the Wraith glowed purple and turned into dust and flew off with the wind.

He looked up to meet his rescuer but as soon as he saw her, any hope he had decided to abandon ship. Still, if there was to be any resolution to this, he had to start somewhere, even if it was with Desiree Elegia Skye.

"Well, I admit that you were the person I was least hoping would come along but a save's a save right? Tha-"

"Be quiet," Desiree said, shoving her palm into his face, pushing back onto the ground as he tried to get back up. She looked around for a moment to check that they were alone before finally turning around and extending her hand to help Sora up.

"Thanks," Sora said, looking at the hand. He accepted it and Desiree stood him back up. "Hey, what was that attack you just di-"

As soon as he stood back up, Desiree punched him in the face and knocked him back down.

"Are you an idiot or something? Attracting attention to yourself like that?" Desiree asked.

"Actually, that was kinda the plan." Sora rubbed the bridge of his nose as he stood back up.

"An intentional idiot is still an idiot," Desiree said. "Thanks for drawing those things here."

"Huh? Hey, hold up! What's that even mean, I drew them here?" Sora asked.

"They only come out in the presence of Keyblade Wielders. Any sign of the Keyblade or a lot of magic being used and they are on you like hounds, so congratulations, you just put a lot of innocent people in danger. Not that you aren't used to doing that already," Desiree told him.

Sora sighed and gave her a look of remorse. "Sorry. I didn't think-"

"No, you didn't. Anyway, why are you here?" Desiree asked.

"I've come to end this, whatever _this_ is, between us. I know we've had our differences in the past and I can't say I've forgiven you for what you've done to me, but this is much bigger than us right now. That's why I'm here," Sora said.

Desiree stared at him with her jade green eyes before turning around. "And you even came alone. You know, you remind me of myself and that really annoys me."

Sora grinned. "Hey, then I guess we can be idiots together, huh?"

"Don't count on it," Desiree replied, maintaining her lack of emotion. Provided the unlikely scenario of pigs flying, he would somehow manage to get her to crack a smile in front of him, though whether he cared so much to even bother, he wasn't sure. "And the attack you asked about, the white fire… those things are weak to light and dark attacks. Please tell me you at least knew that?"

Sora simply gave her a silly grin. "Well I know it now, and knowing is half the battle."

"Ugh, you are hopeless. Alright, let's go," Desiree said. She started off down the long street without saying much more and Sora was powerless to do anything but follow. As he walked through the narrow streets of high residential buildings and private mansions, he pondered how best to strike a conversation with someone like Desiree. Just how does one become friendly with someone who had poisoned him once and sadistically flailed and healed him over and over? When he thought about it like that, the answer was pretty obvious. No sane person would consider trying to understand someone like that.

They soon took a left and then another right after two streets to reach a mansion with a square garden at the front.

"You guys own something like this? I didn't think you were the types to gloat extravagance. Er, Moira's Crescent I mean, not you," Sora said.

"It's not ours," Desiree said. "Once upon a time a girl and her family lived here. Now they are gone. There's your bedtime story for the day."

"I don't know what to take from that story. Either you killed the family and took their home or they were long since gone when you came here," Sora said.

"Think whatever you want," Desiree replied. She summoned her Keyblade and unlocked the door for them to enter. Once inside, Sora immediately heard the voices of two other people in one of the rooms towards the back. As he took a few steps, a parrot suddenly swooped in to attack him. Sora screamed and crossed his arms to cover his face.

"That's enough, Jack. Get back here!"

The feeling of wings slapping against his hand soon disappeared and Sora slowly lowered his arms, trying to adjust to his surroundings once again. He finally settled on a girl in a red cloak with blonde hair by the stairs, her right arm outstretched for the parrot to perch on.

"I apologize. My brother's been slowly losing himself the longer he's been like this," the woman said.

"A parrot's your brother?" Sora asked.

Desiree shook her head. "No, her brother was turned into a parrot. Her name is Jill and his is Jack. Amusing? Yes, but you get used to it quickly."

Just then, four more people appeared by the door in the back. Two of them he recognized as being Salome and Rhea, the latter who was being escorted by one of the two boys next to her.

"I thought I heard Sora's voice. Sora? Are you there?" Rhea asked, her eyes searching for something to focus on.

"Rhea, it's good to see you again," Sora said. She was probably just about the only person he was glad to see. As long as she was here at least, there was a chance he could make this work. "Thanks for helping out with Luna again. I really appreciate it."

"It was no problem at all. You're here on your own?" Rhea asked.

"Because this is something I decided to do by myself. I'm ready to settle this. I don't want us to fight anymore," Sora said.

Rhea smiled at him. "Couldn't have said it better myself. Welcome to our humble abode. Make yourself at home."

* * *

 **A/N: So a bit of a tease placed into the middle as to where Luna will be heading on her side. As for Sora, how will his meeting with Moira's Crescent fare? Find out in the next chapter. Also, it seems like things are finally heating up in Union X. Laurium what now? I'm not necessarily pleased with this information coming from a mobile phone game but we'll see how far they go with it.**

 **Also, to anyone who's reading this an affected by Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma, my heart goes out to you guys and I hope you're safe out there. And for others, please do your best to support the relief efforts in any way. It may not affect most of us, but it is something that any one of us could easily be in so to know that you're standing with them no doubt means a lot.**


	46. The Long Commitment

Chapter 45

The Long Commitment

It was her second time marvelling the magnificent Radcliffe house and the wonder that had come with her first experience hadn't faded. If anything, this experience was actually amplified by the curious and excited looks of Eleftheria, who was the first person to examine the station wagon on the asphalt.

"Wow, this looks pretty cool in a one of these things is not like the other sort of way. It's kinda tacky in the grand scheme of things, don't you think? You have a big house and you settle for something like this?" Eleftheria asked.

"Maybe it was their favorite car? If something was already working fine for me, I wouldn't be so hasty to go for the next best thing just because everyone else did," Luna said.

"While I value your… well, values, I think it's a bit different when it comes to things like this," Eleftheria said.

"Hey, you determine the value of things you own, not others. Though if you're doing it just because you want to stand out, we're gonna have a problem there," Neuge said.

"Heh. I found that it wasn't too hard for me to stand out in school… for all the wrong reasons," Luna said. She walked up to the door and knocked on it, expecting to see Roger or Anita or even Nanny. What she hadn't expected when the door opened was the face of a smiling Cruella De Vil to greet her.

Luna reacted quickly and summoned her Keyblade, drawing it on her. Cruella let out a small scream and raised her hands as she stared on petrified.

"What are you doing here? Trying to kidnap more puppies? And what did you do with Roger and Anita?" Luna asked.

"No, no, you misunderstand! Those days are past me now. I just want to make up for it the best I can," Cruella defended quickly.

Unconvinced, Luna kept her Keyblade trained on her and took a few steps back. "A likely story, but you aren't fooling me. Step out of the house, now!"

"Cruella? Who is it?"

Luna frowned and looked past her, having recognized the voice. It was cheerful and lively and not at all fearful for it life like she had expected it. Anita Radcliffe came into view and her eyes grew big in surprise.

"Oh, Luna, I'm sorry. I'm afraid there's been a misunderstanding. Cruella, are you alright?" Anita asked, checking up on her.

"Oh, it just gave me a start, dear, but you know what they say. You need a little bit of shock every now and then to know you're alive," Cruella said, laughing it off. Unsure of her position now, Luna dismissed her Keyblade and looked towards Neuge who gave her a sympathetic look.

"Do come in. I'll make some tea for all of us. Cruella, you sit down too," Anita said. Though she was reluctant to do so, Luna followed Anita and Cruella into the living room where a rather comfy couch was waiting for them. Luna looked about with intrigue as she noticed puppies with black and white spots everywhere she looked. Some of them roamed in and out of the room while others stayed in their place, either napping by the fireplace or playing with each other in the corners of the room.

"Aaah! So many! How many are there?" Eleftheria asked.

"Not including the parents? Just ninety-nine," Luna answered with cheerful smile and bob of her head.

" _Just_? The parents must have been a pretty freaky couple then," Neuge said.

"If I remember correctly, Pongo and Perdita only gave birth to fifteen of them. The other ones came later," Luna explained. She looked over to the television to see one of puppies standing there, staring at the moving images of a black and white movie on the screen. She whistled at the puppy. "If I remember right… Lucky? Come over here, boy."

It was as if the puppy was trying to look toward the person who called him while also looking trying to keep its eyes on the screen which produced some hilarious results for Luna and Eleftheria.

Anita soon returned with five cups of tea on a tray and set them down on the table. She looked to Cruella first as if trying to decide something before turning to look at Luna with a smile.

"How have you been, Luna? It's been a long time."

"I know. I'm sorry for not coming sooner. There's just been so many things that have been happening which are all really hard to explain," Luna said. Lucky finally managed to turn his attention to Luna and bounced his way over so that she could pick him up.

"I'm sure it's been hard. As for Cruella, she recently came out of prison on parole. She came to our doorstep claiming to be rehabilitated and that she wanted to help out in any one possible. Roger was reluctant to do so but Cruella and I used to go to school together. She was my friend. I wanted to believe that she truly, sincerely, had put her past behind her, so I suggested that Nanny take a vacation and Cruella take over temporarily in her stead." Anita placed a hand on Cruella's shoulder, who smiled back at her.

"Anita, you really are a sweetheart. I'm so fortunate that someone as kind as you is my friend," Cruella said, placing her spread out fingers on her chest.

"Well, us girls have to look out for each other," Anita said. She caught the frown on Luna's face but said nothing, opting to take a sip of her tea instead.

"Ooh, this might make a good story actually. How do you do it? One hundred and one of these guys? Are they all toilet trained?" Eleftheria asked as she rummaged through her bag to produce a notepad and pen.

"Asking the real important questions here," Neuge said sarcastically.

"I love animals. Sue me," Eleftheria said. "Also, you know what I say? Dogs and cats may rip each other apart but they'll also bring the world together."

"Well, I'd be happy to give you an interview but first, Luna, do you mind if you come with me to the kitchen for a moment?" Anita asked.

"Sure," Luna said, setting her cup down. She set Lucky down and followed Anita into the next room.

Anita leaned against the counter and looked over to the other room before saying in a low voice, "Roger says I'm too soft, but I want to… I want to believe. What do you think? Am I being too naïve?"

"Of course not. It's not wrong to want to believe that others can change. If you knew her from your school days, it only makes sense that you want to see her do well. I haven't seen my friend Astra in a while, but I want to believe that when we do meet again, our friendship won't be any different from before, even if we've both faced a lot that could have changed us," Luna said. "So no, you're not soft. You're positive, and that's not a bad thing at all."

Anita seemed to relax at this and smiled. "Thanks. I just hope this all works out in the end."

"Me too, if not just so that Roger can't gloat," Luna said. "Let's go back. Eleftheria does need her interview after all."

* * *

After being poisoned once before, although Rhea did her best to make his stay at their home as comfortable and safe as possible, it was hard for Sora to settle down entirely. Though the house wasn't giving something like Alexander Palace or Corona Castle a run for its money anytime soon, it was still a big house filled with many rooms to explore, albeit none that particularly struck Sora's fancy. This wasn't so much the fault of Moira's Crescent but apparently the previous owners who had their property stripped away from them. Though he was not told the full events (Rhea told him to bring it up with Desiree later), the house had been completely abandoned when they had found it.

As they briefly toured the house, Rhea, Salome and Lysander also told Sora about Horus' attack on their base and that, with little other options available to them, Desiree had brought up the old mansion she had worked at as a maid. Moira's Crescent had come to the mansion with nothing but the clothes on their backs due to the sudden attack, and that also meant no money, leaving hallways like the one he was walking in now empty and unidentifiable to the next. Soon, they arrived at one door in particular. Opening this door revealed the dining room with the other members already sat down at a long oval table.

"Sorry if the environment feels a bit hostile. If we had the budget, I would have opted for a beach outing," Lysander said.

"As if we have the time for that either," Vyce said. He had been escorting Rhea earlier when they had met up at the entrance. After just a few minutes of observation, he had to say that he and Jill were the most mysterious of the group.

"Why let our missions disrupt what we do best? You telling me you can't spend an evening just chillax, bro?" Lysander asked.

"Don't… say chillax," Vyce said through gritted teeth.

"As you can see, we're quite the colorful bunch of characters," Salome said to Sora. "Also I give everyone here pet name. Rhea is Ray-ray, Lysander's is Lizzie, Vyce's is Edgy-"

"Are you serious?" Vyce objected, taken aback for a moment.

Salome giggled. "Hehe, I kid. I kid. Hmm, your one's a bit difficult to come up with though."

Sora raised an eyebrow before shaking his head. "Just Sora will do."

"How about Sore-loser, ha-ha-ha-SQUAWK!" Jack the parrot suddenly blurted out.

"It… can talk?" Sora asked in a high-pitched squeal.

"He IS my brother," Jill pointed out. He couldn't see much through her red hood covering her expression but her voice told him all he needed to know. She seemed annoyed that he hadn't managed to fully piece together what was obvious to her.

"Ooh, I figured it out! Sorwar. See? I added a cute little animal noise at the end," Salome said. "Oh, or maybe even Sorasaurus! Dinosaurs are pretty cool, right?"

"Not the time, Salome," Desiree said. She rested her arm on the top rail and looked at Sora. "More importantly, I have my concerns. It is as Kohle said, no? We have no reason to believe Yeul's vision has even been fully realized. Hasn't he already done more than enough damage? Why take the risk and make things worse?" Desiree asked.

"Kohle isn't here last time I checked. Rhea's the leader now until he returns. Heck, he might just have to earn the position again when he does come back," Vyce said. "I say something as important as this shouldn't be put to a vote. Rhea should decide."

"So all our voices are lost to the wind? No, I don't agree to that," Jill said. "Moira's Crescent works towards an ideal and no one person is bigger than that ideal. If our opinions reach a stalemate then the leader can decide. Why change the rules at this stage in the game?"

"I won't take away your right to have an opinion," Rhea raised her voice to silence what looked to be a bubbling argument between Jill and Vyce. Once she was sure she commanded the attention of the entire room, Rhea placed a hand on Sora to let her go and found her way over to the table, slowly pacing both hands flat against the mahogany. "But I will question your inability to see the forest for the trees. Failure isn't a measure of a man's worth. It's what he does with that failure that determines his or her true value. Sora is doing everything he can to atone for what he feels is his fault. I don't even necessarily agree that it was, but his bravery to even come to us alone in the first place is unlike any I've ever… well, I wouldn't say seen but you get the idea. He never allowed it to shame him into inaction. He's persevering, and that should never be shunned by those who know failure. Or can any of you say you're impervious to such faults?"

As she finished, the table seemed unanimously impressed, or at least were more open to considering things than they had been before. He lowered his head and let out an appreciative smile. Rhea really had come through for him again. He just wished he could add something else of his own, but maybe this was enough for now.

Desiree leaned out of her lazy adopted position and smiled at Rhea. "Now that I think about it, I don't think we've ever voted to welcome a new member into the group."

"I don't recall saying I wanted to join your group. I want to work with you," Sora corrected.

"That's what Astra said too at first," Desiree said, placing her chin on top of her hands.

"Well, I'm not Astra. Where is she anyway?" Sora asked.

"We haven't seen her in a while. She disappeared on us not long after our leader left too. And then Fonnie was captured during the attack on our old home," Salome explained with a sudden lack of energy behind her voice.

"That's not good. Luna was looking forward to seeing her again," Sora said. He had been dreading Astra as much as his reunion with Desiree, so for her to be absent was no big loss, but just like with Desiree he would have to make amends sooner or later. "Anyway, it's not just me you're working with. There are people from other places, worlds, whatever you want to call them. The people that I've met have come together because they want to make the world whole. They call themselves The Wayfinders. Rhea, you once told me that your group work to keep the world the way it is. To stop it from falling off the edge of reason into a pit of madness. But we're off that cliff now. It's not about trying to keep the world as it is. It's about making the best of what we've got."

Rhea smiled and nodded. "I admit I was wrong. And all this time I thought natural progression was the way to go. Allowing others to come to their own conclusions in their own time. But what if that never happens? Everyone takes inspiration from someone. If we know something to be wrong then it's our job to lead by example and tell others that it's wrong, not just simply wait for them to realize that. I don't want Moira's Crescent to just be looking in from outside the hourglass anymore. If the tale of those with key-shaped swords is a muddied one then I want the world to know that it wasn't just that. There were those who fought to defend others with those same weapons as well."

"Yeah! And our chapter can be even bigger. Like three quarters of a book bigger!" Salome exclaimed.

Lysander grinned. "Hey, why stop there? Let's relegate those douchebags from the past to a prologue."

"This is our story, huh?" Sora repeated the words that Auron had once spoken to him. He mouth curled up into a smile and looked to Desiree. "So, everything's cool between us?"

"To judge someone based on the values I believed to be correct is a most dangerous thing indeed. I admit I may have overlooked this most basic fact. I… guess I should make a formal apology for poisoning you, and stuff," Desiree admitted, afraid to look directly at Sora.

"Hey, you know you're rather cute when you're honest with yourself," Sora teased.

Desiree sneered at him and stood up. "I rescind my apology. Can I kill him now?"

* * *

"Gee, you only have five channels on this thing? _Laaaaaame_ ," Eleftheria said as she flicked back and forth between channels on Roger and Anita's television.

"Is there something wrong with that? They are the only channels, aren't they?" Anita asked.

"Not where I'm from. Fourty-five channels of entertainment and TV stations drowning in the honey money, hear it and weep. Though maybe in the future we'll just be able to watch whatever we want whenever we want, like a service that provides a massive collection of programs."

"That would be handy, although forty-five is a lot. I wouldn't even know what to do with so many," Anita replied with a laugh.

"Ah, most of those channels are pretty boring. I only watched the cartoons and a few dramas that my parents used to watch," Luna said, entering the living room on her way to the entryway. "Okay, Neuge and I are heading out now. We'll be back as soon as we can."

"Hey, we'll hold the fort until you get back," Eleftheria said. Luna nodded and joined Neuge at the front door. They had barely stepped out onto the asphalt before Neuge began talking.

"I have to wonder… what do you think of Cruella?" Neuge asked.

"Oh, I can tell that's been sitting on the tip of your tongue this entire time," Luna said. "I don't know? I mean, people can change, that's not out of the ordinary."

"It isn't, and it's what Yen Sid and I have been working towards with the leaders of other worlds," Neuge replied as they passed the gates and started down the hill to the main road.

"Yeah. It's just that I don't want _this_ to be the only way we handle things, you know? That we solve our problems just by getting rid of them outright. There has to be other ways of doing it. And I was think a while back, knowing that I somehow reprogrammed the Heartless into fearing each other, maybe there is a way to reach other people's hearts," Luna said.

"The more you take down, the more they pop up. Evil never rests and yet, even knowing that, you'd be willing to keep trying to reach them no matter how many times you're unsuccessful?" Neuge asked.

"Well, people are people. I'd like to believe that everyone has some level of sympathy. Something they couldn't stand to lose even for power," Luna said.

"You're a dreamer, Luna, there's nothing wrong with that, but sometimes it's best to keep those dreams inside your head. Your enemies notice that innocence and they will step all over you. Not everyone is willing to play at the same poker table," Neuge cautioned.

"I guess it is a bit- no, a lot more complicated than I made it out to be. Maybe I'm the one who's too soft," Luna said.

"You say that like it's a bad thing. With all the hard-headed egos in the world, myself included, the world could stand to have some good apples drop from the tree," Neuge said, giving her a light pat on the back. Luna smiled and, enamored by her teacher's encouragement, convinced herself that she was right and put the rest behind her.

As they headed into the city, the buildings started to appear more frequently. They were long rows of houses, narrow, seemingly claustrophobic and connected straight to the street by stairs. They weren't like the detached houses in Luna's neighbourhood which allowed for front gardens. Luna felt a sense of dreariness from even looking at them.

As she turned onto the main road, she was surprised too by the amount of cars on the road. Alexander, though it was a big city, was also compact with its streets too twisty for roads so the main method of transportation to get from A to B in the city, other than catching a ferry, was bicycles.

Neuge glanced down at her pupil to see looking all starry eyed at the passing cars and concealed her chuckle with a soft huff that went unnoticed.

"Can't stand big metropolises like this. I'd much rather take somewhere quiet any day of the week, maybe by the sea. This noise, the smell, people… they all just piss me off," she soon said.

"I could tell," Luna said, letting out a laugh. "But maybe since you've spent a really long time in the Realm of the Dead, the last thing you'd want is to be alone."

"No, I'd think it was for that reason that I'd want to be alone. Just because they're dead, doesn't mean they're silent. It's a wonder I didn't end up crazy," Neuge replied.

"But you sure do drink a lot. Erm, I'm assuming you didn't drink before," Luna said.

"You assume right. I don't really know what I'm doing with my life. Right now, all I know is that I have a chance to finally change things like myself and… though I don't care to admit it, Xehanort wanted. It seems in the end though like he had something completely different in mind when he told me he wanted to change the system too," Neuge said.

They soon reached a shop with a newspaper stand and Luna reached out to take one, paying the shopkeeper 60 munny before walking away with Neuge.

"Of all the things you buy a ruddy tabloid paper? Eleftheria would be ashamed," Neuge said.

"Hey, it was the cheapest one. And I'm not exactly buying it to hear their opinions. They can twist words all they want to suit their agenda but they can't hide facts. We just need to figure out if there's been any strange activity lately that could lead us to the heart," Luna said.

Neuge looked around at the people passing by them and then back to Luna as she struggled to flip through pages while standing.

"Well, you look weird standing around like that. There's a bench nearby. Come on," Neuge said, directing her over to a bench underneath a tree. Luna sat down and scanned each page quickly before moving to the next. When she flicked past a certain page featuring a rather busty model, Neuge shook her head. "Pervs, the lot of 'em."

"Would it be better if it were a shirtless guy?" Luna asked.

"No, dare say I have standards," Neuge replied.

"Woah, we have a rebel here," Luna joked. "Well, it is pretty bottom of the barrel, but that's why we have things like these—so that people like us can avoid things like this and enjoy the best."

"And yet you gave them money," Neuge said, resting her cheek on her fist.

"I know. I'm part of the problem, aren't I?" Luna rhetorically asked before looking back to the paper. "Still… err… nothing too unusual I can see here. Isn't it kind of weird? The stars have disappeared. You'd at least think that would warrant some sort of panic. Could people have really gotten over that so quickly?"

"It's been a few months, what do you expect? No one's going to stop doing what they're doing, save a couple crazy types, just because a bunch of stars are gone. If it was big news here, or anywhere, it isn't anymore. That's just how quickly people lose interest over this stuff. Unless it's affecting their own lives, they're going to stop caring eventually," Neuge replied.

"Well, that's a pretty negative outlook," Luna said.

"Get used to it. I have a whole lot more," Neuge said, holding her hand out. "Here, let me see."

Luna shrugged and handed the paper over. "Sure. Maybe you can find something I didn't, I guess."

"Well, we have different eyes for starters…" Neuge said. She eventually lingered on one page out of the rest about halfway through the newspaper and smiled. "You need to read between the lines more. See? Featuring rare and priceless items from the estate of Cruella De Vil, from high-value furniture and rugs of heavy textile expressing symbolic purpose to certified jewellery and fine fur coats. Also included is a seemingly unidentified heart-shaped article of indeterminable wealth."

"A heart-shaped article? It's worth checking out. And I guess they weren't going to let Cruella keep all her stuff," Luna said.

"Says the auction is this Saturday. To be held at the Chapel Music Hall," Neuge read out to her.

"Saturday? That's two days from now! There's no way we can wait until then!" Luna exclaimed.

"Yes…? Which is why we just take it now? Don't tell me you were actually thinking of bidding for it?" Neuge asked.

Luna began playing with the curls at the end of her hair before beaming. "Maybe I was…"

"You don't get to play that one off cool," Neuge said before looking back at the address. She flicked through a few more pages until she was satisfied and closed the paper. "So what do you say we confirm this location and head over there?"

"Sure," Luna agreed. She and Neuge stood up and started down the crowded street again, but not before Neuge dropped the newspaper into a litter bin nearby.

"Just putting it back in the rightful place it belongs," Neuge said with a smile before continuing on.

After asking around a while, they finally found someone who could point them in the right direction. It took them almost an hour to walk from where they had been to a building of baroque architecture, a contrast to many of the other buildings she had seen on her way there.

"Well, it's locked. Oh deary dear. Now what do we do?" Luna asked. The two had worked their way around the building's perimeter and had come across two entrances, one at the front facing the main road and the other, where they were standing now, on the right side of the building facing a side street.

"Luna, I can't tell whether you're trying to be intentionally airheaded so I can call you out about it or what, but do I really have to remind you that you have a Keyblade?" Neuge questioned.

"I kid, of course!" Luna beamed at her before summoning her Keyblade. Neuge walked over to Luna's side and leaned against the building, her back turned to the main road to cover Luna from view. Luna unlocked the door and dismissed her weapon before giving a doorknob a twist and a push to get in.

"This counts as breaking and entering, right?" Luna asked.

"Oh yeah. And you can bet if we're caught we'll be serving jail time," Neuge said with a grin on her face. "Does that scare you?"

"As if I haven't done something like this before. Heh-heh… yeah, I am not making this a habit," Luna murmured.

"A pity. I was hiring for a partner in crime," Neuge replied. They stepped into the middle of the room to see a pair of arched stairs heading up to the second floor. Once there, they found doors leading into the auditorium at different heights. The door farthest to the left took them to the stalls, where they were able to reach the stage easily by going straight down the aisle.

"This is kind of spooky. I've never really been to a play where the lights weren't on, either in the room or on the stage," Luna said. "What if a ghost appears?"

"Then good luck surviving. I've lived with the dead for quite a while, remember?" Neuge said.

"I've lived with Heartless, though I'm not sure Heartless and ghosts can be compared. For one, I'd take a Heartless over a ghost any day of the week, though I hope I never have to make that choice," Luna said.

They climbed onto the stage and made for the door in the back, partially concealed by a red curtain. As they entered backstage, Luna felt an invisible force attach itself to her chest, almost as if it were wrapping its fingers around her heart.

"This feeling… is this the heart?" Luna asked.

"Is this seriously what you guys have to go through all the time? Damn, it's so annoying," Neuge said through gritted teeth.

Luna shook her head but said nothing. This one was different from the others somehow. It tugged at her and steered her in its direction. She wasn't even entirely sure if she was in control of her body anymore, but she wasn't going to resist if it was guiding her to the heart.

The backstage played host to various objects for the auction, but she seemed to know exactly which of these draped items were important and as she reached a specific corner of the room, she pulled off the cover to reveal a bright light.

Neuge whistled and shook her head. "I never thought I'd ever be this close to Kingdom Hearts. Not it in its entirety but this… this is good enough."

"Well, I'd let you take it in as long as you need to but that probably isn't the best idea. I've seen it tempt others before… and they suffered for it," Luna said while continuing to stare at the heart. She herself was transfixed, not by the heart but what she thought she saw within it. She was looking into a mirror, but it wasn't reflecting herself.

"Wake up, sweetheart."

Luna's eyes opened to the starry night sky. To her left was a familiar face—that of her mother, staring up at this same sky. Luna was perplexed for a moment. Eventually, she rose up from her resting position and looked to her mother.

"Beautiful. Isn't it?" Kaylah asked. "Just how many of those has my little girl been to by now?"

Luna looked around them for a moment. They were on the hills of Alexander, Luna's favorite spot where she used to hang out and watch the stars. Because it was her special place where she liked to be alone, she had never invited her parents or told them of its location when she had lived with them.

"Not too many," Luna eventually answered. Her mind was in another place though. How had she even ended up here to begin with? And how was she talking with her dead mother anyway?

"Oh, how I wish I could go with you. To see what you see and talk and joke about things like old times. Why I bet you even sometimes forget about me and dad, huh?"

"Please, I could never forget you guys," Luna said. "Sometimes you're even what keeps me going."

"You don't know how much that means to me," Kaylah replied with a smile. Her smile soon disappeared and she placed a hand on her chest. "Luna, my heart is breaking. I can feel it. An immense pressure on my chest."

"That feeling… that was what led me here! Are you saying I felt the same thing you're feeling now?" Luna asked. She quickly shook her head. "Wait, that's not important. Your heart is breaking? What do you mean by that?"

"You may not feel it, but this world… it's dying. Mankind, the original bearers of the light, realized themselves too immature, too uncivil to hold and use it. They knew that were they to keep possession of the light as the simple species they were, that light would inevitably grow to become a weapon that could crush even them. So mankind wished to the stars. A single wish driven by many souls that the light might be safeguarded until a time came when those same stars deemed them capable of wielding such power again. Their wish became reality. The light would be harbored within a massive container, one that would ensure the cleansing and rebirth of lights tainted and pure evermore. It was also serve as a library for records of humanity, a gift for the more evolved of our kind. I suppose Kingdom Hearts doesn't see us as evolved enough for its tastes. Though that begs the question—will it ever?"

Luna was taken aback. Suddenly it was as if her mother was speaking a completely different language to her. It took her only moments later to figure out what was really happening. She had once experienced something like this before, back when she had found the last piece of heart in King Louie's temple.

"You're not my mother," Luna said, slowly standing up.

"Luna, honey, sit back down. I'm not going to hurt you," Kaylah said in a calm voice. It was definitely her mother's. Luna didn't doubt that, but…

Luna responded with a stiff shake of her head. "N-no. Stop impersonating my mother. I-I know what you're trying t-to do."

"Luna, I need you. The hatred of humanity runs deep. It's something that my heart can stand to take. But you can save me Luna. And your father. We can be together again." Kaylah reached out and took her daughter's fingers, stroking them with her thumb.

"Y-you… can…?"

"You believe anything's possible, right? Then don't fault now. All you need to do is… walk away. Just forget about the heart and walk away. Don't let Kingdom Hearts dull your ears to what's really important. Just let go. Just let… go."

It took all her strength and inward shouting before she could speak again. "I might believe a lot of things, but bringing people back from the dead isn't one of them!"

" _Luna… Luna…_ Luna!"

The sharp slap was enough to bring her back into reality. She blinked in confusion for a moment before turning around to face Neuge. A visible frown was on Neuge's face, something that Luna would no doubt have to get used to with time. When she thought of Neuge, the face she saw now was nowhere near on the list of features Luna would use to describe her.

"Couldn't you have… I don't know, shaken me or something. That hurt," Luna said, placing a hand on her cheek.

"There's a lot more where that came from if you ever space out like that again," Neuge replied, gazing straight into Luna's eyes.

"Sorry for worrying you," Luna said after a moment. There was really no doubt in her mind now. For all of Neuge's posturing and boasting that she didn't see herself as the motherly type, she wasn't completely without paternal instincts, especially when it came to Luna. For that alone, Luna felt compelled to tell her about what she had just witnessed and what the heart disguised as her mother had told her.

"So in other words it doesn't want to be reunited with Kingdom Hearts? The thing has gained some type of sentience then?" Neuge asked after Luna had finished her retelling.

"I'm not sure, but we have to do it, don't we?"

"Do we?" Neuge flipped Luna's question on its head, leaving the teen with a bemused expression.

"W-well if we don't do something about it, then it could end up hurting people," Luna reasoned. As to whom she was reasoning with, she felt like it was more with herself than Neuge.

Neuge's face barely moved an inch in response to this. "Then there's your answer."

"I… guess it is," Luna said, mainly to herself. Even as she brought her Keyblade up to the heart, she couldn't help but think of the words her mother spoke to her once again. She knew that what she had seen had been fake, but what she had felt… she had felt something genuine, perhaps even something scary. She had felt a familiar warmth and longing, probably due to seeing her own mother, but she had also felt something that hadn't belonged to her but the heart itself. She had felt fear.

The heart was raised into the sky and flashed brightly for a moment before disappearing into tiny flecks of light that dissipated before their eyes. It took Luna a good while afterwards to lower her Keyblade. She couldn't help but feel uncomfortable about the whole situation for some reason. If the remaining hearts were going to try to pry into her heart to manipulate her then she would need to be on her guard.

"Job done. Just in time for dinner," Neuge said.

Luna chuckled. "It's gonna be a long way back, you know. Why not stop at a café and get something to eat before heading off?"

"Well I could certainly do with a nice cup of coffee right now. Maybe some doughnuts too," Neuge replied. "You know what? Consider it on me."

"Oh, I expected you to pay it all anyway," Luna said, starting back for the curtains.

"Funny considering you never expected a good slap," Neuge retorted, following soon after. The two made their way out of the building and came across a small café almost immediately upon reaching the main street. After ordering coffee and doughnuts in brown paper bags, they sat outside to eat.

Luna had completely expected when Neuge had told her that she wanted to accompany her that their interaction would be completely different and more professional than her and Sora's. She couldn't have been more wrong however and she was glad for it. Luna wanted to think of it as Neuge making up for her lost years in the Realm of the Dead.

As soon as they finished, they were off again. By the time they reached the Radcliffe household again, it was almost night time. As they walked up to the doorway, Luna and Neuge heard raised voices behind the door. Luna glanced at Neuge quickly before quickly knocking on the door.

Moments later, Roger Radcliffe opened the door and smiled. "Luna! It's good to see you again."

"Is everything okay?" Luna asked.

Before Roger could respond, Anita popped up behind him with a look of distraught etched on her face. "Luna, one of the puppies has gone missing."

* * *

 **A/N: So when I say that Danganronpa v3 is most likely going to take up a lot of my writing time, that isn't to say I won't still be writing. I'll probably be focusing more on Through Smoke and Flames for at least the next week alongside it. I know, leaving you to wonder the fate of the missing puppy is cruel, but I also need to get out a particular writer's block I'm having with this story, in case you were wondering why it took so long for this chapter to come out. Working on something different usually helps with that.**

 **Also, for Riku and Kairi's stories, would you prefer they happen as separate stories or be a part of this story? Reason I ask is that I'm thinking it might take away from the pacing of this story if just put them in between Sora's story and the last story. Also, it might be more easily accessible. Tell me your thoughts on the matter and see you next time.**


	47. Black and White

Chapter 46

Black and White

 ** _The Radcliffe House, Estate of the Dalmatians_**

"Luna, one of the puppies has gone missing!"

Luna wasn't quite so sure why it had taken a while for Anita's words to register with her. It was probably because she had been expecting to get back and relax for a while. She had assumed her problems had been one and done after collecting the heart but in her joy and relief she had forgotten something. As a Keyblade wielder, she never quite knew when her job would really be over.

"Missing? You'd like that to be true. You know full well what happened? It was her. She hasn't turned a new leaf, just as I told you," Roger said.

"You act as if someone's personality is set in stone. Just because she was interested in the puppies in past doesn't mean she is now. You have no proof other than what happened in the past," Anita defended, moving with Roger into the living room where Eleftheria and Cruella were.

"I know you like to believe in others Anita but really now? If not her then who? Eleftheria?" Roger asked. He walked over to one of the puppies and scooped them up into his arms. He strode over to Cruella and held the puppy out to her. "I'll prove that the leopard can't change her spots. Well? You kidnapped Lucky, didn't you? That's the real reason you came here. Even now you're thinking about the fur coats you can make out of them, aren't you?"

Throughout—she didn't really know what else to call it but torture— Luna couldn't help but feel sorry for Cruella as she whimpered, cried and stuttered denial after denial of any involvement in Lucky's disappearance. Even if Cruella was the most suspicious, what she was watching now was crude and agonizing, like a predator playing with its prey.

She made an attempt to step in, but Neuge was faster. She took the puppy from a confused Roger's arms, set it down and then proceeded to grab his arm and flip him over her shoulder, sending him to the floor.

Anita instantly put a hand to her mouth. "Neuge!"

"What? It's a habit. Your husband needed to cool down for a moment anyway," Neuge said, putting up both hands in defence. She lowered them as she looked back to Cruella. "It's as Anita said. Just because someone did something in the past, that's no grounds to automatically conclude that she's the one who did it. Suspect her if you must, but you gave her no chance to defend herself."

Cruella looked up at Neuge with a smile and extended a hand towards her in gratitude. "Oh, you're so kind. Thank you, thank you so much. I'm just a bit… stunned right now to say the least. I don't even know what's going on-"

As Cruella's hand came towards her, Neuge stepped out of the way, causing Cruella to fall silent. "It's not over yet. Even if it is innocent until proven guilty, you're still a suspect."

Cruella fell silent after that. Whether she felt she had to do so because talking might possibly dig her grave further or because she was actually confused and scared, Luna decided to take a chance. She didn't want to believe that someone like Cruella was beyond saving. She needed to encourage both Cruella and Anita, of whom she could tell her faith was waning in her long-time friend.

"Cruella, we want to believe in you. I don't want to think you would waste a second chance at living your life, but you have to give your side of the story. Maybe you're scared, but it might just help prove your innocence. Right, Anita?" Luna asked.

"Y-yes, that's right. Cruella, would you like a cup of tea? It'll help calm the nerves," Anita offered. While she headed to the kitchen, Luna helped Cruella to a seat and sat down beside her. Luna couldn't help but feel slightly uncomfortable sitting next to her, even if she did say she wanted to believe Cruella. What would Sora think if he were here now? Would he be willing to give her a chance or would he be more reluctant?

"I know what you want from me but I really don't know what to say. I was cleaning around the house most of the time. I saw the puppies during that time of course but it's hard to keep track of every single one of them. I know that's a poor alibi but I didn't do anything to poor Lucky," Cruella insisted, looking to Roger for acceptance.

Roger remained unconvinced, but looked towards Eleftheria instead and asked, "You were in the living room the entire time working on your article. Did you notice anything?"

"Let's see…" Eleftheria put a finger to her chin and tapped lightly as she tried to remember. Eventually, this seemed to prove too much for Eleftheria who let out a grunt of frustration and dropped her hand. "I kinda tend to really get into my writing so I didn't really notice anything…"

"Maybe we should spend less time accusing and more time searching. We have nothing to suggest he was actually kidnapped. Luna, help me check outside," Neuge said. She headed into the kitchen and soon returned with a box of dog treats. She passed by them without a word for the front door leaving Luna with not much of a choice other than to follow after her.

"Do you have an idea where he might be?" Luna asked.

"I have my guesses. You remember the last thing he was doing before we left?"

"Err… I mean, I was playing with him for a bit but I can't really think of-"

Neuge stopped and looked back at the house. "I thought so. I think he took a liking to you. It's possible then that he followed us on our way out without us noticing."

"That… is a good point. Now that I think about it, there was this one time when Sora's dog, his name is Pascal, went missing one day. We were searching all over for him and we didn't even find him until way later when one of the neighbours came to our door with him," Luna said. She looked at the box in Neuge's hands. "So that's what these treats are for?"

"You guessed it. He might have slipped out when we were leaving and we probably didn't notice. Let's just hope he didn't go too far," Neuge replied as she started setting treat after treat along the path.

Meanwhile in the living room, Cruella held on to her teacup with shaky hands. Her eyes became transfixed on the pendulum of the grandfather clock, swinging back and forth every second. An unsettling feeling emerged in the pit of her stomach and suddenly she began to feel lightheaded. Such was her state of frailty that Anita's voice went unnoticed until it was too late. When she came to, Anita was right in front of her and she jumped in shock. The cup of tea, which she had been unaware she was holding, dropped from her hand and hit the carpet, spilling its contents around their feet.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Anita. I just… I don't feel so good at the moment. I'll clean this up and then-"

"No, no, it's alright. It's been a tough day for you, Cruella. Please, get some rest. I'll clean this up," Anita assured her. Cruella smiled meekly before retreating upstairs to what had once been Nanny's room. There she collapsed onto the bed and hastily wrapped the covers around her. She closed her eyes to block out the world around her but even in the pitch darkness, her mind could see visions of black spots against white, all encompassed by the sound of a whooshing pendulum.

Back outside, Neuge had finished planting the treats all the way to the gate and had made her way over to the bushes where Luna lay in wait.

"What if we have to wait all day?" Luna asked.

"I'm sure I'll hear more of how bad you and Sora are with handling pets then," Neuge replied. "And if you're bad with a pet, I don't even want to know what you'll do with a baby."

Luna blushed furiously. "Baby? No, no, no, we're not thinking- I mean, that's way too early!"

"Yeah, that's what they all say… until the hormones start kicking in." Neuge grinned and shook Luna's shoulders playfully.

"Ugh, Neuge!" an abashed Luna responded.

"What? It's the future. Don't tell me you've never thought of it. White picket fences and all…" Neuge said.

"Well, what about you? Forty-odd years old and still single? What kind of future is that?" Luna asked with a mischievous smile.

"Hmph. What indeed. I don't know where my future lies. I had all but given up on it after being in the Realm of the Dead for so long," Neuge said.

"Then what kept you going? You could have just given up but you didn't," Luna said.

"Oh, I did give up. Many times. But I suppose the part of me that still cared won through in the end, didn't it?" Neuge answered. "And you should be happy too seeing as how you would both be flopping around like fish outta water if I weren't around."

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Luna replied curtly. She glanced over at Neuge and smiled at her before looking back to the path of treats. She beamed and walked out onto the path. "There he is! You were right."

"Of course I was. I'm always right, unless I'm drunk anyway," Neuge replied. Luna scooped Lucky into her arms just as he finished his third treat and ran her fingers across his head.

"Here you are. I guess Roger has a lot to apologize for, huh? I'm really happy for Cruella. She doesn't have to stress over people not trusting her," Luna said.

"We'll see," was all Neuge said before bending down to pick up the dog biscuit ahead of Luna and Lucky.

After letting Anita know that they had found him, Anita excitedly did a little jump and hurried off upstairs to tell Cruella of the good news. Reaching her door, she gave a light knock.

"Cruella?"

There was silence. Perhaps she just hadn't heard. Anita tried calling again but received much the same response. Slowly she reached out and took hold of the handle. Bringing it down, she entered the room to find a human-sized lump under the covers of Cruella's bed.

"Cruella! Are you alright?" Anita asked, running over to her. She extended her hands for the covers but-

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Cruella hissed cruelly, causing Anita to quickly retract her hand. There was moment's pause before Cruella added in a calmer manner. "Sorry. I shouldn't have shouted at you like that. I just feel… cold."

"Cold? That's strange. It's not really the season to catch a cold, is it? Please Cruella, let me check your forehead," Anita requested with a concerned gaze. Cruella turned on her side to face her, exposing her pallid face and beads of sweat on her forehead. It took everything for Anita not to open her mouth in shock.

"It's fine, Anita. Some rest and I'll be right as rain. Did you come to see me because you were worried?" Cruella asked.

"Yes, but also because we've found Lucky. It appears he just wandered out while Luna and Neuge were leaving."

Cruella shifted her head as if to indicate a nod. "That's good. That's good."

"You're innocent, Cruella. I've asked Roger to apologize to you but I suppose it's better to wait until tomorrow when you're able to be on your feet," Anita said. "He's stubborn, but he knows when he's cornered."

"I can't fault him for that. I've been stubborn in my own time too. Convinced I was right," Cruella said.

"I know. That hasn't really changed from our school days. But, strangely enough, I found that quality rather admirable in you. I've always admired how you never took no for an answer, even if you eventually took that 'no for an answer' thing too far." Anita let out a chuckle. "I suppose you could say that you're my biggest inspiration."

Cruella's eyes widened at this before turning her head to face away from Anita. "I can't say I understand your choice in inspirations. And besides, in a way, I've always been jealous of you. Of how free-spirited you are. And your creativity."

"Really? I never knew. We couldn't have been more different, but our paths still crossed. We became friends. Maybe one day we'll even go back to that joint business venture we thought about a long time ago. Better than being stuck in a boring office job. We could do it, you know?"

"I wouldn't say no," Cruella replied. Anita laughed and started towards the door.

"Well, I should let you rest. I really am so glad everything can be like it used to again. Thank you, Cruella," Anita said.

"I'm glad too, Anita," Cruella murmured after hearing the door close.

* * *

 ** _The Skye Mansion, La Cité des Cloches_**

Rather than having a choice in the matter, Sora soon found himself sitting around the dining table alongside the rest of Moira's Crescent's members. According to Desiree, if he wanted to work with Moira's Crescent then he had to act like a member of Moira's Crescent. In spite of this, he was pretty sure that she actually didn't want him exploring their home on his own, and he wasn't exactly about to argue against that.

He took his seat in between Vyce and Rhea, and it didn't take long for Lysander to return with Hot Pot that he had prepared for all of them in the kitchen downstairs. He had found it rather strange that the kitchen would be on a completely different floor but Desiree explained that it was normal in places like this for maids and servants to have their own quarters on a separate floor, including the kitchen where they worked.

"Mmm, that smells so delicious! I think I'm in love again!" Salome moaned in delight as Lysander set the food on the table.

"You were in love before?" Desiree asked.

"With food. If it's a choice between a boy and food, I'll take the food every time. Sorry, Vicky-boy," Salome replied.

"Please, as if any man would fall in love with your annoying ass," Vyce said.

"Don't hate me cause I'm beautiful, honey." Salome winked at him before looking to Sora. "Come on, you gotta eat! It's not poisoned, I promise. Maybe. Probably not-"

"Salome, don't scare him out of eating," Rhea said with a smile.

Sora chuckled. "Nah, it's fine. I can tell she's just joking. Maybe. Probably. Anyway, I'm pretty hungry anyway. Let's eat!"

He was actually thankful that Salome had mentioned poison. Even though they were all eating from the same Hot Pot, the possibility that for whatever reason they would have conspired to put something in his meal probably would have been in the back of his mind, potentially ruining what had been a delicious meal.

"You cooked all this by yourself Lysander? You're quite the chef, aren't you?" Sora asked.

"It's the only thing really saving him from being worthless at this point," Jill said with a snicker.

Lysander scratched the back of his head and gave an awkward grin. "Oh come on, Jill. You don't really think of me like that do you?"

"But of course. In fact, I've considered many times of leaving you to die alone during missions," Jill replied.

"Oh. Nice to know my life means so little in the eyes of others," Lysander said with a sigh. He looked and gave Sora a grin. "And thanks. It's all just a culmination of experiencing a lot of different worlds and cultures on my travels. I like to learn about the different foods people make and eat in those worlds. I mean, I'm not exactly the best at using my Keyblade like the others so I can't say Jill isn't right. I'm pretty much useless otherwise."

"Don't say that. You're passionate. That's what counts," Sora offered.

"Uh oh, he's encouraging him," Vyce muttered.

"Huh? Is that a bad thing?" Sora asked. He never got a chance to hear the answer. Rather, he would have to experience it. Painfully.

"Hey, you good at video games? I love them and I'm especially pretty good at fighting games. You don't even want to know how I get with fighting games. It's like I'm a completely different person. Some people say I can get pretty annoying when I play them because I'm so competitive. I absolutely hate people who spam the same moves over and over again and usually those kind of games that don't have countermeasures in place to prevent that usually aren't worth my time. I can't believe that more games don't weaken moves every time you use them so that-"

"Oh my dear aunt sally, now you've done it," Vyce groaned into his hand.

There was a loud whistle and Lysander froze, the excited glint in his eyes replaced by fear. It was like a switch that flicked and turned off his enthusiasm in an instant. Slowly he turned to look to Desiree.

"Oh, quelle galère. My feet hurt right now. If only I had a footstool to rest my weary feet," Desiree said.

"Uh, but I was just explaining to Sora-"

"Did you hear what I said? That means you, you braindead cur! Get on your feet and fulfil your purpose as my footstool!" Desiree sneered at him.

"Yes, mistress," Lysander squealed. Rushing over and bending below the table so Desire could place her feet on him.

"Desiree, please. He's a human being," Rhea pointed out with a worried glance.

"I like to think that I'm contributing to his character growth by toughening him up. It's like hiring a personal trainer and I'm even doing it for free out of the kindness of my own heart," Desiree said, smiling sweetly.

"I'm pretty sure those two things can't be compared," Salome said with a finger on her cheek.

"As you can see we're quite the crazy bunch but I like to think these little moments bring us closer together. When the worlds were apart, there were a lot of times where some of us were on missions so we never really had much time to hang out with each other. You have to cherish the little moments like this," Rhea said to Sora. "But even we can't pretend that everything's alright. It's as you say, we need to look towards taking back our world from the remnants of the past. It's only fitting that our first triumph should be a symbol of the light itself, Radiant Garden."

"So you can all be ready instantly when the time comes? You do know you'll have to put everyone here on the front line," Sora said with lines of worry on his forehead.

"I don't think there's any one of us who hasn't thought of the way we'd go out. The truth is, when you do something like this, you have to be prepared to give it your all. That includes your life. While we've all thought about that, how we come to terms with death is different for all of us. I don't want my friends to die. There have been times where I've thought that I'd rather die than see my own friends taken from me, but I know that's selfish for those who want to see me live. And you know what? In the end, I decided that a good death was one in which I couldn't choose."

"Couldn't choose?" Sora repeated.

Rhea nodded. "As long as I'll never have to choose between myself and my friends, I'll accept it. That said, that was the answer I came to. The one you may come to will undoubtedly be different, though if you haven't thought about it yet then I hope you may never have to."

Sora let out a small chuckle and looked down to his food. "Too late for that."

"So, Sora. How exactly did you intend to get into a heavily fortified town such as Radiant Garden? Do tell?" Desiree asked, resting her chin on her hands.

"Err…" A nervous smile broke out on Sora's face. That was a really good question. He had been so concerned with gathering people to take on Horus that he had never really considered the best way of minimizing any casualties. If he were asking to put his friends' lives on the line, then he ought to have least thought of a strategy beforehand, even if Lightning and Neuge had probably thought of their own.

"Don't beat yourself up over it. At least half of us, Desiree included, have thought about rushing in without an actual plan to rescue Alfonso," Vyce said. "As if the seven of us could stand a chance against their entire army. Even with us, you and the rest of your crew, we're still at a significant disadvantage."

"That's why we've been working towards something. It's a bit of a complicated process since we need to figure out their every move, but we might finally have a chance," Rhea said.

"Indeed. An assault by air will be incredibly difficult. They've recently installed air defence systems on the walls surrounding the town. They probably couldn't handle several ships but we don't want to sacrifice others just to get in so that's not an option. That leaves ambushing one of their convoys," Jill explained.

"Convoys?" Sora asked.

"Yes, like the song," Jill said before shaking her head. "They've been trying to locate tombs of some kind. I can only assume whatever lies within them obviously can't be good for us. You can thank your friend Kairi for that information."

"Kairi? You met Kairi?!" Sora asked, his eyes brightening at this revelation.

"Like a puppy given his treat. But yes, she and I met a few months ago. Anyway, if we want to infiltrate Radiant Garden, we'll need to go through security and the best way to do that is through one of the returning convoys," Jill said.

"But where do we even begin to find a convoy or whatever? What do they even look like?" Sora asked.

"You'll see for yourself. Come with Vyce and me after this, okay? We'll set this plan in motion," Salome said.

"Anything to give us the upper hand. I'm in," Sora said without hesitation. He would gamble on just about anything to increase their chances of victory.

Salome giggled. "Hehe, I knew you would say that. And we've already chosen which of the convoys we're going after. It's in a pretty big city though. _Aaaaaand_ it's probably gonna cause a lot of commotion so we have to be in and out fast, okay?"

"Please, I'm the king of being in and out fast," Sora said.

Jill gave a lopsided grin and looked to the side. "Oh, I bet you are."

"Was that a dirty joke? I think that was a dirty joke but I'll ignore it," Rhea said. "In the meantime, the rest of us will meet with your group. I know we've tried so hard to keep the existence of other worlds a secret from one another, but knowing that those people are aware of each other and are helping one another is pleasing. It means that whatever the outcome of this war, there's definitely a future for this world, as long as those who wish it have the will to make it so."

* * *

 ** _Quality of Life Technology Centre, San Fransokyo_**

The door burst open and a dozen armoured Keyblade wielders ran into the room, lining up on either side of the room until six were facing six. The blonde-haired girl tried her best not to act fazed by this and instead continued to stare at the open door, watching as the last person, one in gold armor compared to the more muted colors surrounding the girl, walked in and stopped at the first row of soldiers.

He took off his helmet, revealing his steely gray eyes and graying hair. "General Sabbat of the Hauteclaire division of Horus. And you are the seeress, I presume?"

"I have a name. It's Namine-"

"Your name matters not. With having such an amazing and rare ability to see all of time, yours is the most important existence there is. If not us, then you would have inevitably seen the faces of Cephadalus or Oberian, who hunger for the chance to prove they can play with the big boys. But alas, for them this war of ours has come to an end. With the last seer and a piece of Kingdom Hearts' light in our possession, Horus cannot be stopped. Now enough running away, witch. It's time you served your purpose."

Namine looked down at her dainty fingers pressed to the hem of her white dress. "Witch… I've always been called that. I've never been able to escape that word, ever since my birth. And if those who say it believe it, then maybe it does have some merit to it. Maybe I am a witch. And if that is the case then how do you know this isn't all of my making?"

"What? What nonsense is this now? Are you still trying to weasel your way out of this?" Sabbat asked.

Namine shook her head. "Of course not, because as I told you, this is still within my making. If I'm a seer then don't you think I could have foreseen that I would be captured?"

"You're bluffing…" Sabbat responded hesitantly.

Namine stood on her feet and walked towards Sabbat slowly. "Am I? Don't you find it strange that I'm here by myself where you could easily reach me? And if I really did predict such a future, then you can also believe this—I've seen yours and the rest of Horus' future and only tragedy lies ahead. But of course, if you don't believe I've seen the future then carry on as you are. We were headed somewhere then?"

Sabbat snarled at Namine's ferocity. If she was trying to play games with him then he would show her otherwise. Acting swiftly, Sabbat slapped her to the ground with the back of his armored hand.

"Know your place, witch. If you think you can threaten me then you clearly can't see everything coming your way," Sabbat said. He watched as Namine slowly stood back up with a hand placed on her bruised cheek before looking to one of the soldiers. "Take her back to the convoy. Our mission is done here. Prepare to move out."

Her wrists cuffed by their tight confines, Namine was forced to comply and not put up any resistance. She didn't need to fight back to win anyway.

They guided her through the building she was in, a research laboratory connected to the group of friends who had helped her out. They reached the entrance and Namine caught sight of several vans parked around the facility.

"Just place her in the van with the other prisoner," said one of the soldiers behind her. One of her captors let go of her left arm, leaving the other to drag and throw her into one of the vans on the right. Namine caught herself from falling and looked up towards the other girl who had already been looking at her.

"This better work," Xion said as Namine sat down on the bench opposite her.

"It will. He'll come. Trust me," Namine replied with a reassuring smile.

* * *

 ** _The Radcliffe House, Estate of the Dalmatians_**

It was nighttime and Luna had been unable to sleep for some time. She was plagued by the words of her mother, or the heart piece pretending to be her mother more accurately. The whole entire incident had creeped her out and the only reason she hadn't had to think on it too much was because of Lucky's disappearance. And now as she lay here by herself, tossing and turning in an effort to fall asleep, she couldn't help but wonder if it wasn't just the heart piece talking to her, but maybe also her mother somehow?

"Ugh, I wish I could talk to her again… just one more time. But I suppose that's what the heart piece was praying on. My needs… speaking of needs, I'm really hungry, right now," Luna murmured to herself. She just hoped she wouldn't get too much flank from Anita and Roger for taking something out of the fridge this late at night, but she wasn't doing any better just lying in her bed.

She slipped out of bed and walked barefoot out of her room and down the hallway. As she came down the stairs, she noticed the first thing that was off in the house. There was a slight chill that was drifting into the room. She rubbed her arms up and down and walked to the entrance way to see the door slightly ajar. Frowning, Luna looked around to check if anyone else was around. Perhaps Eleftheria needed some cool air to get inspiration for her work.

She walked slowly towards the door, as if she were in a setting out of a horror movie, and reached out to pull the door's handle towards her. The lines on her forehead became more pronounced as she stared at what she was seeing in bemusement.

"Eh? I think we 'ave enough as we're gonna get. We ain't gonna fit any more pups in. Let's just go now before them lot wake up," whispered one of the two men.

"I can't believe she called us up at such short notice. And here I was hoping to get some shuteye!" exclaimed the other man angrily.

"The sooner you two idiots hurry up with the job, the quicker you can go back to your beds. Now stop dawdling and get in!" snapped a very familiar voice, one that felt like it could punch Luna in the gut and knock her off her feet. She pressed her hand against the wall to steady herself and took a few deep breaths to keep her composure in check. So many emotions were running through her all at once. She felt anger and, perhaps more immediate to her worries, like she was going to cry.

She steeled herself and pushed open the door, summoning her Keyblade. "CRUELLA!"

Two men stopped in their tracks and Cruella popped her head out of the vehicle and looked back at her.

"Now listen here, girlie. None of this has to go down south if you just go back to sleep and pretend none of this ever happened, yeah?" warned the man with the cockney dialect. He brandished his knife and took a few slow and deliberate steps towards Luna, probably in an attempt to freak her out.

Luna just ignored both men and looked over to the van. "How could you? After everything we did to prove you innocent… I trusted you!"

"And I'm appreciative of it, darling. Really. But I suppose the world sees us on different sides of the curtain," Cruella said.

"Are you really blaming the world for your actions?" Luna shouted.

"Well, Roger at least certainly seems to think so. Besides if you're a fan of me, you probably would have seen this coming," Cruella replied.

"But… even Anita believed in you. She gave you her complete trust and faith and you're throwing that away as if it were nothing?" Luna asked.

There was a moment's silence before Luna heard Cruella's reply. "Well, I should be going. Coats aren't going to make themselves, you know. Boggs, Fletcher, GET IN NOW!"

"Yes, ma'am," the two sidekicks said in unison. As they turned around ran for the front of the van, Luna aimed her Keyblade and cast Blizzaga, creating a sheet of ice trailing from herself to under their feet. Boggs and Fletcher slipped on the ice and fell with one of them landing on top of the other after a desperate attempt at grabbing the former's waist to keep him upright.

Cruella growled and started in the engine quickly. Luna ran forward and blew off the back right tire with Fission Firaga. As she ran toward the back of the van, she heard someone call for her.

"Luna? What's going on?"

Luna turned around to see Anita, Roger and Eleftheria standing there with very much the same look she had when she had first noticed there was something wrong. Meanwhile, Cruella was pounding and tugging at the wheel in frustration as she tried to make the van move.

"Infernal thing! Start, blast you!" Cruella yelled.

"Cruella…" Just seeing the pain on Anita's face was enough for Luna let alone hearing the sadness in her voice. Luna walked to the back and cut through the padlock and latch with her Keyblade. The doors slowly opened by themselves and one after one, puppies jumped out from the back of the van.

"Anita, I'm sorry. I'll… get the police," Roger offered his condolences. He squeezed Anita's shoulder before heading back inside. Luna walked forward and opened the car door. Cruella froze in place and looked her with a frivolous smile as if she were a child trying to hide something from a parent.

"I don't suppose it's too late to forget about all this and just call it a day?" Cruella suggested.

"Cruella." Anita appeared beside Luna and glanced back at Eleftheria guiding the puppies back in before speaking. "You always find a way to surprise me, even if it is for the worst."

"Anita, darling. I suppose I'm just not as good a person as either of us wanted to believe. Maybe in another life," Cruella said.

"Maybe in this one. I truly do think you meant what you said, Cruella. You just need friends to push you in the right direction," Anita said.

Cruella gave her what seemed to be an earnest smile. "You really are my dearest friend. You're also incredibly naïve. I think I'm more jealous of you at this point. Well, if you insist on changing me, chase me to the ends of the earth, my dearest Anita, and try if you can."

Anita shook her head. "Ever the drama queen, Cruella, but I can't help you if won't at least try to help yourself."

"I suppose I'll have plenty of time to think about that, won't I?" Cruella said.

"Cruella," Luna added. "When you come back out next time, if you make Anita sad, she's going to contact me and I'll take care of you for her. I guess what I'm saying is don't make this a habit."

Cruella smiled at her and looked out of the windshield upon hearing the nearing police sirens.

"Well, time to run. It was nice meetin' yas." Boggs, who along with his partner Fletcher managed to get back up, tipped his flat cap and ran for the fence. He stopped only seconds after when noticing his partner hadn't moved and ran back, dragging him by his jacket. "This way ya idiot."

"Hey, stop right there!" Luna yelled. She was about to aim her Keyblade again but grinned instead as a few of the puppies ran and pounced on the two, hindering them from a successful escape.

"Seems like a tough case of puppy love." Neuge appeared from the doorway with a serious case of bed hair. She probably hadn't noticed herself but Luna certainly hadn't noticed until now because she had always seen Neuge with her hair tied in a bun up until now.

"You're fashionably late," Luna commented.

"That doesn't sound like me. If I were late, I would not do it fashionably. In fact, it would be the most unlady-like unfashionable thing I could conjure up," Neuge said.

"And you wouldn't even have to try… yep, I can see that," Luna admitted. She looked to the gate as two police cars pulled into the driveway. Cruella stepped out of the car and willingly raised her hands as the policemen stepped out of theirs. As she was being cuffed she looked back at Anita and smiled.

"Don't be a stranger," she said calmly, before being escorted off.

Anita watched Cruella disappear into the police car before applying her thumb to her lower lip. "I made the right choice, didn't I? I chose… not to give up on her. Because I believe there's still a future for her. But maybe I'm just wasting my time. Maybe this is going to be Roger's 'I told you so' moment. I am naïve."

"You are," Neuge replied. "But if your husband's going to try that at a time like this then he's a dick. Besides, being naïve isn't always a bad thing. I've said this to Luna already but, if being soft allows you to view the world in a more positive light, that can't be a bad thing. As long as you're willing to get back up when the world inevitably kicks you down because of it."

Anita smiled at her sheepishly before returning her gaze to the police cars. Eleftheria stepped up to join them.

"No matter how much the pain, you gotta get back up... you know, I think I've found inspiration for another article I can write," Eleftheria said.

The next day, just before Luna, Neuge and Eleftheria were set to depart, Eleftheria spun her laptop around on the table for Luna, Neuge, Anita and Roger to see. As Luna read through the article, she couldn't help but be impressed by Eleftheria's journalistic analysis, though that was probably to be expected. She read the concluding paragraph out loud:

" _Naivety. It brings us closer, luring us in under the false pretences of hope and complete faith in another. If such a trait can bring people, even the likeliest of enemies, together, then that trait can't be said to be completely bad. Unfortunately, with willingness to allow someone into your heart, you also risk the dangers of them having access to it. The knife's tip is sharp and the plunge can be sudden. How does one deal with such a fatal wound? That's what the people I've encountered on my journey have had to answer themselves as they jump into a cycle of trust and betrayal. And the answer they've found? It doesn't have to be fatal, and it certainly doesn't have to be never-ending. As long as you have the strength to push forward and keep getting up, the knife, no matter how sharp it may be, will never overcome your desire to find good in others. Our trust in each other is the strongest weapon we have in these dark times, so never be afraid of opening your heart because that is the pain which makes us stronger._ "

They were words Luna would continue to live by.

* * *

 **A/N: So it probably helps if you imagine a Cruella who doesn't look like the one from the animated movie for this. Err, Emma Stone is slated to play her in that live action film coming out next year, so feel free to picture her. Unless the movie and her performance suck (hard to see from Emma Stone) in which case, Glenn Close is probably still a good bet. Anyway, next chapter things will heat up as Sora, Salome and Vyce head towards San Fransokyo for a confrontation with Horus' Hauteclaire Division. Stay tuned for more!**


	48. Wanderer Over The Bridge

**A/N: Disney bought 21st Century Fox, you say? Time for me to bust out that Simpsons chapter. Here's me being half-serious though, I just want an Infinity War type thing where Thor meets the Guardians except here Sora, Donald and Goofy meet the Futurama gang. Didn't know how much I wanted that until now.**

* * *

Chapter 47

Wanderer over the Bridge

Due to the unusual inconsistent elevation of San Fransokyo's roads, Namine could tell when they were travelling up and down. Occasionally the van would come to a stop and Namine was left to listen to the soft rumble of the engine before the vehicle began moving again.

She looked over to Xion who had the back of her head resting against the wall and looking off to the side absently. If what Xion had told her was true then she had every reason to be distant at the moment. Aside from the two of them, there were two members of Horus guarding them. Before they had started driving, they had reverted out of their armor, probably for comfort. If she were either of them, she wouldn't get too comfortable just yet.

The van soon veered to the right and began its long journey across the San Fransokyo Bridge with the rest of the convoy either ahead or behind it. Namine looked over at Xion before letting out a small cough to alert Xion. Xion let her head drift over and winked at her before looking back to the side.

A few minutes later, the van suddenly came to a complete stop. Their two guards looked at each other before the one closest to the front stood up to slide open the window to the driver's compartment.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"I don't know. Something's up," replied the driver. The sound of the car door opened and Namine heard the driver get out.

"I have a question," Xion suddenly spoke out, causing the guards to turn to her.

"And what's that?" asked the guard still sitting next to Namine.

"What if I need to pee?"

The guard frowned. "What?"

"What if I need to pee?" Xion repeated with an unreadable face. "Do I just… let it ou-"

"Do you need to? Right now?" asked the guard.

"Maybe. Wanna wait and see?" Xion retorted.

"Doesn't look like we're going anywhere any time soon. Take her to a bush or something," said the guard by the window.

"Does it look like this bridge has any bushes?" the guard replied in an annoyed tone. He sighed and stood up to walk over to Xion. As he reached for her arm, Xion reached for his and jumped on him, using his bent knee to climb onto his back. She wrapped her left leg around his neck and put weight on her right leg, using it to bring herself and the guard onto the ground. With them both on the ground, Xion let loose several quick jabs to the guard's face with her right hand.

The second guard ran in quickly and grabbed Xion by the waist, slamming her into the backdoor. Seeing an opportunity, Xion threw her head forward and slammed it into the guard's forehead. There was a visible hiss of pain from both sides as the guard dropped Xion and stumbled back a bit. As he came near her, Namine stuck out her leg causing him to trip over it and fall. As he tried to get back up, Xion threw her entire body into a punch that slammed his head against the compartment wall. Namine looked around and observed Xion's handiwork. One was unconscious while the other was rolling about in pain.

"You okay?" Namine asked as Xion walked over to her with a bobby pin held in her bloody hand.

"Me? Yeah, just great. Them? Nah, don't think so," Xion said. She knelt down and Namine brought her handcuffed hands forward. Within seconds there was a click and Namine was able to throw the handcuffs to the side. Xion looked back to the bodies and walked over to the guard who had attempted to put a hand on her first. She raised a foot and rested it on his face, turning his head to the side.

"Which one of you has the key to get out of here?" Xion asked.

"Screw you…hngh!" Xion pressed harder against the man's face with the heel of her shoe.

"I'm fine with you not telling me. It's not like I can't just search the both of you, but I can't guarantee that you'll come away from it with your head held high. Well. I doubt that'll happen even if you choose to help. At this point it just comes down to who chews you out. Your boss or me. Pick your poison."

The guard grunted and looked off towards his unconscious partner. Xion followed his gaze before raising her foot from his head.

"Thank you," Xion said sweetly. She walked over to check the unconscious man's pockets but Namine's eyes were on the other man and for good reason, it turned out, as she could see what looked like embers of light forming in his hand. Namine ran forward and drove her foot into his head as hard as she could, knocking him unconscious as well.

Xion looked back to see this and smiled. "We make a pretty good team. You sure you don't want to be a samurai too? Think about it. The Silver Samurai and her faithful companion the Samurai Seer."

"My heart can barely take this. I'm definitely not cut out for that," Namine said, though the exhilarating feeling of her beating heart at what she had just done seemed to enjoy at least some part of it.

Xion eventually found the key and opened the back of the van, exposing them both to a mix of orange and blue above the San Fransokyo skyline. If there was one time of day Namine could draw to and take inspiration from, it was the evening. Perhaps that had manifested as some sort of acclimatization to Twilight Town's perpetual evening. But as much as she wished the view the evening sky, there were more important matters to attend to.

"Hiro and the others are waiting for us on the other side of the bridge. And hopefully Sora too, if my vision was right," Namine said.

"Uh huh. Please tell me your vision also told you that a giant waterspout and a sea serpent were headed our way," Xion said.

"That's rather precise but no, I don't think so…" As Namine turned around to look at where Xion was looking, a sense of dread crept its way into her bones.

* * *

 ** _San Fransokyo Bridge, San Fransokyo_**

Sora emerged from the corridor behind Salome and Vyce, and his eyes were immediately glued to the glistening red tower in front of them, a mixture of art deco and Japanese architecture. Likewise, there was another tower about a thousand metres farther down, closer to the actual city.

Sora whistled. "This place is certainly different."

"No time to talk. Look ahead," Vyce told. Sora looked down and his lips parted in shock. Lying ahead were several bodies strewn across the bridge and vans, some overturned while others were on fire.

"What did this?" Salome asked.

"Good question. I wonder if this is the convoy. Only one way to find out," Vyce said. Salome nodded and the three of them started towards what seemed to be obvious danger awaiting them. Salome was first to say aloud what Sora found weird, that aside from these vans, the bridge was bereft of pedestrians. That was probably a good thing, though not so much for those in the vans.

As Sora walked past one of the vans, he heard a yell from nearby. "Glory to Horus!"

He was barely able to turn before the van exploded and he and Salome, who had cast Reflect in time, were knocked back by the explosion. Sora rolled on to his back just in time to see Vyce cut down someone nearby with his Keyblade.

"Thanks," Sora said to Salome as he got up.

"Of course. We're partners now after all, Sorbet!" Salome said with a grin.

"Err, sorbet? That's… yeah, anyway… guess we should keep an eye out from now on. I don't really want my last memories to be dying to a bunch of nutjobs," Sora said.

"Nutjobs? I don't think it's so simple as that. They're fighting for something. Just because their vision of the world and our vision differs doesn't mean we ought to dismiss them as lunatics," Vyce said.

"And when those perceptions cause other people to suffer? No, I think what I said before was perfectly fine," Sora replied.

"Believe whatever keeps you breathing. We can play the game of who's right and who's wrong another time but for now let's just do what you so rightfully suggested and move, okay?" With that, Vyce led the way forward and Salome threw a small smile Sora's way before skipping off too.

Sora pivoted on his right toe and twisted it back and forth as he looked at the ground. What Vyce had said was what was probably so frustrating about it in the first place. In the end, whether he was right or not, it didn't matter. Horus would be right if they won. Their despicable fiction would become reality.

He soon looked up at the sound of explosions and ran forward. Before he could catch up with Salome, several Thunder projectiles raced towards him. He rolled into cover provided by a turned over van and peeked around the corner. Salome, who was in front of him, deflected the magic attacks being hurled at her before running towards one of the men in armor. She kicked off his chest, backflipping and leaving him momentarily stunned. With graceful speed, she went back and struck him with her Keyblade. Stabbing her Keyblade into the ground, she lifted her feet and swung her entire body around it. Releasing her grip, she flew forward and kicked the remaining soldier in the face, sending them off the bridge.

Landing back on the ground, she summoned her Keyblade back to her before quickly throwing it like a boomerang, taking out one of the soldiers that were surrounding Vyce. Sora expected it to return to her hands but it never did.

"Thanks," Vyce said, catching it instead. He began to duel with the three soldiers in front of him using both his Keyblade and hers. Meanwhile, Salome looked Sora's way and gestured for him to follow before running off. Suddenly, the idea that he would have had to fight Moira's Crescent seemed completely outrageous to him. They knew how to work in a team, and Sora had barely managed to get out with his life intact just facing them one at a time.

He pushed those thoughts aside and shot forward, using Sonic Blade to take out one of the soldiers Vyce was fighting on his way to Salome. Arriving at Salome's side, Sora raised his Keyblade in front of him and deflected the magic projectiles being shot at them. He slowly advanced forward, and Salome kept behind him, waited until they were closer before speeding past him and performing several high jumps, spins and kicks to knock down her opponents.

Sora blinked in amazement. "How in the-"

"Five years of taekwondo. You should try it too, Sorbet!" Salome exclaimed with a grin.

"It's Sora, and I don't think I'm ready to dedicate five years of my life to getting my behind handed to me. I'll leave it to the pros, like you," Sora replied.

"Yeah, the time it takes to master it is different for everyone. I brought Dessie to a class one time and that was the last time she ever set foot there. But I think if she stuck it out, she could have done pretty well. I think perseverance is the most crucial thing. Everyone hates losing, but we should learn to take our losses as a way of building ourselves," Salome said.

"True. Maybe once this war is over, I'll give it a try. Just a try though. I'm not committing yet," Sora said. When this fight was over, he was just about ready to give anything thing a try. If it meant putting all of this behind him, then it was worth it.

"Hey, if you two are done, we still have a couple hundred metres to clear," Vyce said, re-joining them. He chucked Salome's Keyblade to her and took the lead once more.

As they continued to push forward, they soon came across heavier resistance than they were expecting. Vyce had raised a reflect shield in front of them big enough to absorb most of the magic, but their opponents merely countered this by attempting to move in closer. The trio tried to fire back magic of their own but these were deflected by their opponents.

"We're going to have to fall back," Vyce said after extending his Keyblade out to catch a spell that had nearly hit Salome.

"But we can't stop now-"

Vyce spun around to face Sora and grabbed him by the shoulder. "I won't allow your self-indulgent whims of heroism to endanger me or my teammate. If you want to go through dirt and hell, be my guest but you won't see much help from us."

Salome, on the other hand, was much calmer with her own words despite having to deflect the enemies' attacks. "We aren't retreating. We're just making them think they have the upper hand. Think of it like that."

Sora looked at her for a moment before slowly nodding. Vyce released him and began backing away.

"You'll get used to it. For now, let's get to a safe distance," Vyce advised.

"Yeah," Sora agreed with a small smile.

"They're falling back. Charge!" yelled one of the Horus members they were fighting. Abandoning their spell casting, their armored foes raced forwards in an attempt to cut off the trio's escape. One of them aimed their Keyblade and fired off a Fission Firaga at Sora, who managed to slide over the hood of a nearby van in time and ducked. The spell slammed into the van and unbalanced Sora. He managed to catch himself from falling completely with both hands and looked up, searching for Vyce and Salome. As magic of all shapes and sizes started flying back and forth however, he found it almost impossible to search for them.

Sora slowly rose from his crouched position and tried to peer through the van window only to duck again when the window shattered. He silently swore and shook his head, wondering how he had gotten himself into this situation again.

Before he could aim the Keyblade from behind cover, a mighty roar sounded underneath him that caused him to freeze in place. This too seemed to have an effect on those fighting, as the amount of magic being cast gradually resided. Sora's expression softened and he allowed him to breathe before looking towards the railing.

"The heck was that?" he huffed. There was an unsettling creaking coming from somewhere underneath him, slow and deliberate at first but increasing in occurrence by the second until, finally, something large burst out of the water. The scaly shimmering sea serpent soared over the bridge in a perfect arc, droplets of water raining down from its body onto the road, before landing back in the water on the other side.

It only took Sora a few seconds for him to gather his thoughts back from the edge of awe and realize what the graceful creature was. Leviathan, the pet of the Olympian god Poseidon, had caused some brief trouble for him and Luna in the past, at least until the unruly serpent had been reined in by its master. When it remerged from the water again, Sora managed to get a good look at the creature's head where someone was standing on top of it.

"No way… Tia Dalma?" Sora called out as Leviathan drooped over so that the sea goddess was closer to the bridge.

"It's that creature again! Fire!" Sora heard one of the Horus members yell from behind the van. Sora looked up to see a barrage of lights and gusts of wind heading towards Leviathan. Tia Dalma raised her hand and a pillar of water shot out from the sea, absorbing their magic.

"SORA!"

He had no idea how he had heard it, but amidst all the chaos and shouting, he was able to pick up on Salome calling out his name. He turned around to see her jumping up and down, waving at him.

Giving her a nod, Sora began to move towards her and Vyce when it happened. The water barrier placed in front of Leviathan and Tia Dalma suddenly rose to even greater heights, with more water from below coming up to join it. Eventually the column of water became a giant wall, strangely beautiful to look at as it was deadly to be consumed by it.

"My beastie, wipe them all out!" Tia Dalma commanded with a twisted grin.

"Oh crap!" Sora yelled, trying to quicken his pace. His efforts proved to be in vain however as the tsunami moved in even faster than he could get away from it. The waves swept in and latched onto Sora, pulling him into its embrace. For a long time, Sora was unable to tell what was going on. He was being slapped about by water on all sides and some of it had even gotten into his mouth, forcing him to splutter and cough.

"GAH!" Sora let out a yell as he back hit against something metallic and then suddenly, he was falling, falling, falling, and then nothing but pitch blackness. Everything was disorientating. He would struggle to swim back to the surface only to be knocked back in by progressively larger waves. Water filled his mouth and nostrils and his mind was going blank. As darkness slowly came over him, he saw a light fly upwards. Though his mind was able to acknowledge that light, his body felt was unresponsive, failing to heed to his brain's need to move towards it. The light seemed to split into two and began to take shape but Sora was never able to see what they had turned into for his world went dark shortly before.

When Sora next gained consciousness, his lungs felt like they were on fire. He spontaneously flopped onto his stomach and began coughing up water. As he turned back to face the sky he instead came face to face with Yuna, Rikku and Paine. Also among them were Iceguin Ace and Juggle Pup huddled around him.

"Oh, it's you guys," he coughed out.

"'Oh, it's you guys', he says. Gee, how about a thank you instead? You almost drowned, you know." Rikku pointed out.

"To be fair, we kind of just slapped you silly until you woke up. The real MVPs are those funny animal friends of yours," Yuna said.

Sora looked at the two spirits on either side of him and smiled. "Thanks guys. All of you. Really."

As he attempted to stand up, there was suddenly a sharp pain in his chest that caused him to grunt out loud and fall back to the ground.

"Hey, are you okay? Take it easy," Paine advised.

"No, it's just… too many of you out at the same time... and the near death experience too probably. Sorry, I'm gonna have to call you guys back in for now. That okay?" Sora said weakly.

"Sure, I guess, but what are you gonna do? You're in no condition to fight," Paine said. Sora looked away from them and to Leviathan, who was flying around the bridge, causing havoc to the roads with its icy breath.

"Maybe so, but someone has to stop that thing," Sora replied. He looked back at them with a pained smile. "Don't worry. I don't intend to hold back anything."

"My only concern is that you'll go too far," Paine said. "Be careful."

"Oh, and here I was hoping to be reckless instead," Sora replied sarcastically. Paine acknowledged him with a barely visible smile and disappeared followed by Yuna and Rikku. Sora stood up and held out his hand, calling his Dream Eater spirits back to their place of rest. It seemed that they could actually come out by their own will if they sensed that he was in danger, though he supposed that only made sense. Their power came from the same place as the power he used to draw out his Keyblade.

He took a quick look around to ascertain where he had ended up. To his surprise, it looked like he had washed up on the other side of the bridge where he, Salome and Vyce had wanted to be. If they were still on the other side, then it would be hell just trying to get back to them. He just hoped something that he never thought he'd hope in a million years—that they, members of Moira's Crescent, were alright.

Sora pushed that thought aside for the time being and focused on his own safety. He looked towards the steep slope of rocks nearby that led to higher ground and began hopping, alternating from one foot to the other and back again, before running for the rocks. He leapt forwards and began climbing quickly, making sure not to keep his hands in one place for too long in order to keep his momentum going.

Once he reached the top, he took a quick breather and looked up towards the bridge again where smoke was starting to rise from burning vehicles in the area.

 _Gotta hurry up,_ Sora thought as he started running again. Up the hill onto the main road, he spotted a cable car heading down the road towards the bridge. He dodged in between traffic and hopped onto a small piece of footing by the tram's entrance, using the handrail pole to keep himself from falling.

"Hi there," Sora waved at a girl who was standing near him with a free hand. She looked surprised for the briefest of moments before seeming to lash out with a burst of energy.

"Oh, this is _so_ cool. Can I take a selfie with you? I need to get this grammed."

"Grammed? I don't know what that is but sure!" Sora said. Whatever she meant, there couldn't have been any harm in it. The girl turned around and brought her phone up to hers and Sora's faces. There was a snap indicating that the picture had been taken and she turned around to thank him.

The car soon reached the toll booths leading to the bridge and Sora jumped out.

"Hey, you shouldn't go that way! There's something going-" the girl tried to warn Sora but he was too far off to hear her.

He ducked underneath the boom barrier and proceeded through the dozens of police cars to reach the bridge. A man with gray hair and horn-rimmed glasses was the first to notice him and tried to catch Sora's attention.

"Hey, kid! This place is on lockdown. You can't go in- AGH!" The man let out a sigh of frustration as Sora ignored him and kept running across the bridge. He was only able to take a few more steps when Wraith flew in from behind, forcing him to crouch low to the ground.

Looking up from the ground, Sora summoned his Keyblade and glared at the Wrath in front of him.

"Out of my way!" he yelled, charging for them. He brought the Kingdom Key over his shoulder and cut down, taking out one of the Wraith. Not stopping in one place, Sora evaded an attack from a lion-shaped creature and lunged forward, cutting his way through a group of ravens. While still mid-air, he transitioned into a Blizzard Edge and brought the attack to the ground, creating a trail of ice that cut through the Wraith in his way. He cut through the ice, and then cast Aeroga several times, sending the shards of ice into the remaining Wraith.

After landing back on his feet, Sora spared no time in setting off again. He slowed down as the first few corpses came into view. Bodies of people unknown to him lay strewn across the road. Some of them were Keyblade wielders but others had uniforms on that proved them to be police officers. People of this city who had suffered greatly at the hands of things beyond their understanding, and to top it off they were only doing their jobs. Tia Dalma, Horus… they would all pay for what they'd done to the world.

"That was… wow, kid. What the heck are you, some kinda fancy ninja?" the police captain said, having finally caught up to Sora. First a samurai and now a ninja… seriously, what is with this city these days?"

"A samurai?" But Sora promptly shook his head and the captain. "You're the guy in charge? You need to call your men off and order a retreat. That thing's too powerful. You're just putting innocent lives at risk."

"Yeah, I got that. But where do we draw the line? And if there's even a smidgen of a chance that we could stop that thing and protect the public, we'll take it."

"Yeah… something tells me it's not here for the city," Sora said. "I'll take care of it. Just call back anyone who's still standing."

"Wait, but what can you do-" Once again however, Sora was already off before the police captain could finish his sentence. "This is what I get for letting my wife convince me to take this job."

As Sora encountered more and more people across the bridge, most of them dead but those who were alive, police officers and even a few Horus members were tending to the wounded or dead. He supposed at the end of the day, even if they were on opposing sides, it was a mistake to think their enemy didn't understand tragedy or loss. They weren't simply machines fuelled by war. They could feel too. Sora begrudgingly looked away from the heartfelt scene. He wished he didn't have to force himself to think in black and white.

Then, an unsettling feeling started to swell in the pit of his stomach—that Vyce and Salome were possibly among these bodies. There was no time to check all the corpses, but it was clear that the majority of fighting had long since died down. He just had to hope that as long as Leviathan was still at the bridge, there was a chance that someone was resisting it.

Up ahead, he encountered more Wraith. Just like Desiree had told him, it seemed that they were attracted by the Keyblade's magic, so their presence made sense. What didn't make sense, or at least her being there was so surprising that it took Sora a few seconds to register her presence, was the girl in a white dress with her back turned to him. She slowly backed away as the Wraith approached her, but she seemed to hold no fear for the strange creatures.

"Namine?" Sora called. Namine turned around and laid eyes on him, a look of relief on her face.

"I knew… no, more like hoped, you'd come," she said.

Sora was about to smile when he saw the Wraith advance in quickly behind her. He darted forward and grabbed Namine's shoulders, throwing out his left leg to kick away one of the Wraith, before spinning her around and out of harm's way. Letting her go, Sora summoned his second Keyblade into his hand and began ducking and dodging the swings of heavy rusted keys, moving in to attack only when he found an opportunity to strike back. Soon he had managed to effectively quash the Wraith in the area and spun around to face Namine.

"You know, I think I'm getting the hang of this Wraith thing," he told her with a grin.

"Well at least I know you're reliable," Namine responded with a chuckle. "It's so good to see you again."

"Likewise. Where've you been all this time?" Sora asked.

"Trying to understand my powers. I think Yeul passed on her seer powers to me for a reason other than to continue the lineage. Maybe these powers can even save the world. That's why I've been trying to follow in her footsteps. I was at her old home, in Eden, and I saw the devastation that Maleficent left behind in her wake. That pain is what awaits us if we don't end this war. This…" Namine pointed her finger around them at the burning wreckage and corpses. "…is what awaits us. I won't sit by and let it happen, not if I can do something about it."

"I know. I could tell there was something different about you the moment I saw you," Sora said. "Oh, we're going to have to put our reunion on a hold for a moment. There's kind of a giant serpent thing attacking right now-"

"Yes, Xion's off facing it with my other friends right now," Namine said.

"Xion's here too? And your other friends?" a baffled Sora asked.

"I've also been trying to bring together the pieces I've seen in my visions. One of my visions saw you coming here and us meeting. It's the same for my friends. There's a group of heroes here who would be a great asset to you in your battles to come. I've even seen you fight together with them in my vision," Namine said.

"Feels kind of weird for you to be telling me about something that hasn't happened yet, but I'll trust you. Alright, head back to the other side of the bridge and wait for us there, okay?" Sora asked.

"Good luck," Namine said. With those parting words, Namine took off in the direction he had come from. Her leaving his side almost as soon as he had found her was a harrowing thought in his mind that he tried to push back for the moment. He would definitely see her again. He just had to keep believing in that.

He continued down the long bridge all the while keeping an eye on the sea serpent. As he closed in he could make out a small figure in the distance whizzing around Leviathan's head. He was saw absorbed in the majesty of his future opponent that if he had failed to notice two Horus members who had somehow survived the chaos firing at him. The first Fire attack sailed just over his head and he momentarily paused before diving to the ground to avoid the next attack.

"Don't you guys know when to call it quits?" Sora said breathily. He rolled to his left to take cover behind a van though the amount of magic that was hitting the van told him that it wasn't a safe place to stay for long. Sora took a deep breath before exiting cover and running for the Keyblade wielders. Each spell that came his way, he deflected with his Keyblade. Once he reached them both, he performed Zantetsuken, cutting through both of them and landing on the other side. He made sure they had both fallen before continuing on.

Soon enough he was able to make out the small flying figure with ease. It was a strange robot in bright red armor, and accompanying him was a boy flying on his back also in armor. On the ground, there were likewise five similarly garish characters in costumes, like something out of a comic book. Sora cut away from them as he heard the impact of Leviathan slamming its body into the robot hero, sending both it and the boy on his back to the ground. Unable to recover in time, the two crashed into the person in the samurai armor, taking them down as well.

"Hey!" Sora yelled, racing over towards them. He began to slow down when he saw the samurai take off their helmet to reveal long black hair, messy and creeping in all the wrong angles for someone who probably cared. Sora was pretty sure that Xion didn't care though if their last meeting was any indication. "Xion?"

Xion looked up and swept a lock of hair from her eyes. "Sora… told you we'd meet sooner than you think. Like what you see?"

Sora didn't have time to compliment her impressive armor let alone ask about the story behind it. The Leviathan let out a raucous and terrifying shriek. Sora would have been surprised if there was anyone in the city itself who hadn't heard it.

"Looks like we'll have to talk later," Sora said to Xion as he helped the boy who had fallen with the robot back up on his feet. "Hey there. You alright?"

"Well I think I'm about to feel a lot better now that you're here. The name's Hiro," the young teen said. He seemed about Luna's height and his suit was primarily purple with red streaks and black para-aramid clothing covering the rest of his body, serving as armor.

"Hiro? Sora," the spiky brown-haired teen replied, shaking Hiro's outstretched hand. He soon turned away from him and Xion and walked to where the other heroes were standing. He looked straight up into Leviathan's eyes and yelled as loud as he was able, "LEVIATHAN, COME DOWN HERE SO I CAN TALK TO YOU."

"Err, not sure that thing's listening," said a tall and lightly tanned girl with honey blonde hair flowing out from behind her purple helmet.

"We know each other. It'll be okay," Sora assured her, and himself though he wasn't ignorant to the odds being heavily stacked against him. Leviathan, after some careful deliberation, slowly lowered itself towards the ground and Sora smiled. "Hey, didn't think I'd see you here. Where's your master?"

As if on cue, something suddenly burst out of the sea, spurting upwards like a water fountain. Landing on Leviathan's head, the water dripped, revealing Tia Dalma's form.

"Tia Dalma… why are you here?" Sora asked.

"That was my human name. Now, I know only one and you know what it is. Say it. Say my name," the sea goddess commanded.

Sora gulped and looked around at the others before looking back to her. "Calypso."

The straightened lines of Calypso's mouth creeped up into a smile and she held out her hand to him. "Oh, how I have waited for this for so long. For my revenge. Now you shall all feel nature's wrath, as she takes back what is rightfully hers."

"Is this really all because of the pirate kings trapping you? No matter how you might feel, this isn't the solution!" Sora yelled angrily.

"You think this is just because of that? I have been constantly betrayed throughout the years—by the gods up on Olympus, cast out I was, and by your kind, bound in their own grotesque image. And now I see my clear waters threatened by the filth you mortals love so much—war. Conflict. You don't deserve the ground you walk on, the ingenuity you've mastered. The sea shall swallow your kind whole and what better a way to start with than you. Xanatos will be pleased to see a thorn in his side disposed of at last."

"You're working with him?" Sora asked.

"I believe you would call it more of a quid pro quo affair. We simply benefit from each other's actions," Calypso said. "But enough talk. Leviathan, wash away the sins of humanity!"

Leviathan opened its mouth, forming a small sphere of blue light within. Its head leaned backwards for a moment before rocking its head forward, shooting the sphere out of its mouth. Sora raced towards the group and transformed his Kingdom Key into a shield, raising it in time to obstruct the attack.

"Please tell me you can get one of those at the nearest 7-Eleven," said the dark complexioned hero with dreadlocks. Sora was about to tell him he had no idea what that meant when the blast managed to overpower him, throwing him and the group back. Sora managed to land with both feet and his left hand on the ground and looked back at the others.

"You guys okay?" he asked.

"My butt hurts, but at least it's not broken. I think," the honey blonde girl replied. Sora slowly stood up, bringing his shield up with him. He was sure that Leviathan was being manipulated somehow by Calypso. If he could at least neutralize it or calm it, there was a good chance he could convince it to turn on the goddess.

As Leviathan shot more balls of blue light at him, Sora pushed back each one with his shield before driving into Wisdom Form. Sora aimed Oathkeeper at Leviathan and fired continuous shots at the creature, moving from left to right to dodge its blasts. Calypso soon joined, raising her hands and bringing in waterspouts that twisted and danced as though they were instruments moving to a conductor's fanciful design.

"Come on guys, we gotta help too. Let's go, Baymax!" Hiro joined. He jumped onto the robot's back and took off into the air again. Baymax dislocated one of its hands and rocket propelled it forward, slamming into Calypso's shoulder. Losing her focus, the waterspouts formed began to lose shape at first, although she quickly managed to recover and maintain them. As she shot one of them forward, the honey blonde girl retrieved a palm-sized ball from her purse.

"Oh no you don't!" she yelled, throwing the ball at the water. Upon contact, the water suddenly froze, creating an arch that led straight to Calypso. "Go Go, you're up!"

"On it," said a girl of similar height to Sora wearing a yellow and black suit with discs attached to her wrists and boots. Go Go kicked forward, her discs fighting against the resistance put up by the upward sloping ice. Eventually, she managed to reach the end and spun, throwing the discs on her wrists at Calypso. Leviathan, however, lifted its wing up to block the attack. As it leaned back in doing this, its exposed stomach came closer to Sora and the others on the ground.

"My turn," Xion said from behind him, startling him slightly. Passing him, Xion appeared to float, her graceful movements contradicting the power of her attacks as she went from left to right and back again, striking its stomach twice with her katana.

"Aw, I see you guys are doing just fine by yourselves. Were you just playing around before because you were waiting for me?" Sora teased as Xion rejoined his side.

"Of course. Can't show you up if you're not there to see it," Xion replied.

"We'll see about that," Sora said. He watched as Leviathan descended down on them with Calypso who was struggling to maintain her balance on top before turning to the others. "I think an all-out assault should do the trick. You guys ready?"

"I've got your back, man. Err, Wasabi's the name," the dark skinned teen introduced.

"And I'm Honey Lemon. I can blind anyone with science," added the honey blonde girl.

"Go Go. Shouldn't be too hard to forget, right?" said the girl with purple streaks in her otherwise jet black hair.

"And I'm Fred. And yes, this _is_ a costume," said the most unique of the group, a strange creature heavily resembling something Sora had seen when he been in Monstropolis. If his words were anything to go by though, then there was someone else underneath the suit, but Sora was taken aback by how amazingly detailed it was if that was the case.

"Good to know. I'm Sora."

"Uh, guys? Less conversing, more figh-WOAAH!" Hiro yelled as he Baymax dodged and swerved several waterspouts emerging from the sea.

"Honey, I think she just gave me my way up," Fred hinted.

"I agree," Honey Lemon replied. She threw several more chemi-balls, freezing the waterspouts in place. Fred ran forward and jumped incredibly high, moving from one ice platform to the next. As he reached Leviathan, Fred let loose a spray of flames from his mouth. Sora reached out with his hand and entrapped the fire, Leviathan and Calypso within a wind sphere. He could feel sweat dripping from his eyebrows but he ignored it and concentrated with all his might on keeping the sphere up. His vision however was starting to fade and he could feel numbness in his fingertips.

As he began to feel slightly tipsy, he found another hand placed on his own. Sora's eyes landed on Xion, who gave him a confident nod.

"Don't give up on me. If you need to, take some of my mana as well," she said, staring directly into his eyes.

"Ooh! I don't know what's going on but I want to join in!" Honey Lemon exclaimed, placing her hand above Xion's. Go Go was next with body language which was suggestive of "Eh, why not?" followed by Wasabi.

"Guess we're sharing the load, huh?" Wasabi said.

"Thanks, guys," Sora said before looking back at the gigantic ball of flame surrounding Leviathan's head. It was just as Wasabi had said. Like a heavy load being taken off his back, Sora suddenly felt lighter to the point where he could even feel the air rushing in between his fingers.

Eventually the ball of fire dropped its form, sending little balls of fire falling from the sky until none were left around Leviathan's head. Calypso was leaking. Water poured from her body as she fell from Leviathan's head onto the bridge near them.

"Hehe, I kind of feel like I just gave blood," Honey Lemon managed to giggle out.

"Did we do it?" Hiro asked, coming down with Baymax to join them. Calypso, slowly and rather shakily, stood up. As she made her way over to them, Sora could see a trail of water being left in her wake.

"You tried. I give you that, but in the end you're no match for me and the power of Leviathan. Now, it's time we put an end to this. Wipe them out!" Calypso yelled to Leviathan. The serpent opened its mouth, forming a beam of light once again.

"Damn, I thought we had it! Then again, she's a goddess. I guess it couldn't be too easy," Sora said.

"I don't care what she is. I'll kill her no matter how long it takes," Xion replied bitterly. She readied her katana, sharply inhaling. Sora tried to stop her, but Leviathan acted first. The blue light struck Calypso, who screamed as she was absorbed by the light. When it disappeared, Calypso was gone and all that was left was a large pool of water where she had been standing.

"Ciao! Don't hold your breath!" Honey Lemon waved at the puddle before jumping up and down. "We did it!"

"But how?" Sora asked. He turned around to see Leviathan already diving back into the sea. Walking towards the railing, he and Xion peered down to see Poseidon smiling up at them. With that final acknowledgment, he disappeared into the sea along with Leviathan. Peace, however ephemeral it may have been, had returned to San Fransokyo.


	49. The Ultimate Weapon

**A/N: Hope you beautiful sons of guns had a great Christmas and here's to a year where, hopefully, Kingdom Hearts 3 suffers from no delays. In the meantime, as we approach the end of Sora's arc in this story, here's another chapter to showcase a bit of where the story's going from here.**

* * *

Chapter 48

The Ultimate Weapon

The first signs of rain were starting to drop when Lightning arrived in the town of Pelcheney on her horse. Her eyes fell to the gas mask in her hand. Swords and magic were one thing. The Wayfinders were equipped to handle that. Chemical weapons? That was another thing entirely. She wasn't entirely sure if the gas mask would matter but it was better to be safe than sorry.

Suddenly her horse refused to go any farther. No matter how much Lightning tried to make it, the horse neighed and thrashed about in a panic, eventually throwing her off. She landed on her bottom and looked up in time to see her horse running into the woods.

"Odin, wait!" she called after it. The horse seemed to hear her and slowed down to stop at the edge of the forest. She let out a sigh of relief and looked around, suddenly overcome with a feeling of anxiety. She couldn't help but feel that something, somewhere, was watching her.

Her gaze became fixated on a certain point, the wall of a house that otherwise seemed perfectly normal. On this wall was a crack running down from halfway to the ground. Although it was for just a moment, she instantly regretted doing so. A terrible chill travelled through the air that, although invisible, felt like a force capable of reaching out for Lightning. She shot up and backed away, but whatever force she had felt had disappeared. She paused for a moment before looking to her horse. Had he felt that presence too?

"I'll be back soon," Lightning told him. She attached the gas mask to her head and set off into the town. Whatever danger the town held for her, she wouldn't back down now.

"Hello! Uh, hello? Is this thing on?" Enna Kros' suddenly vibrated the tiny bones of her left ear. She pressed her hand against the earpiece as she walked through the town.

"Loud and clear. I can hear your annoying voice just fine, unfortunately," Lightning replied.

"Oh, that's not very nice commander. I'm just here to keep you company. And report anything you see to the others in the instance of your untimely demise. Guess that means we'll be talking to each other for a while!"

"How lucky am I," Lightning replied sarcastically. "Well, makes up for the deadening silence in this town. This is weird. It's like no one's here at all."

"A bona fide ghost town. Hope you've got the holy water prepared," Enna Kros said. Lightning ignored the comment and brought her hand around her gunblade. Enna Kros may have been joking, but at this very moment even that could have been true. There was a strange fog in the air, something that had reminded Lightning of the strange recurring fog that had enveloped her own world several times. The same fog that had claimed her sister once upon a time.

" _Come ooooon_! Talk to me. What's going on?" Enna Kros asked.

"Couldn't you have done this instead? I'd figure you'd be a better choice considering what you are," Lightning said.

"And ruin this smooth complexion? Just because I'm queen of fairies doesn't mean I can't die, you know," Enna Kros replied.

"I hope to test that theory someday," Lightning said. "This fog is getting pretty dense. It's like being trapped inside of snow globe, but replace snow with fog. On top of that, I haven't seen anyone yet. With weather like this, I'm honestly not surprised."

"Well just because you can't see something doesn't mean it isn't there. Keep looking," Enna said.

"Easy for you to say." Lightning reached the town centre where a well was present and walked over towards it. Peering down, she stared into the darkness before looking back up. "I wonder… there's a well here."

" _Well well_ , if it isn't a well."

"Stop that," Lightning cut in. "Anyway, I'm wondering if they used the water system in their attack."

"The water poisoned the townsfolk?" asked Enna.

"What would you say is the most efficient way of disrupting an entire town? You take away what they're dependent on. But why such a despicable method?" Lightning asked herself.

"You just said it was efficient-"

"Not that, I mean why this town? Because it's in the middle of nowhere? It just seems pointless. There's no message behind it. The perpetrator couldn't have known anyone would have picked up on it and to boot there's nothing here. Just peaceful people living their lives… It's senseless. It's…" Lightning looked back into the well again before stepping away. "You know what? Forget it. I'm overthinking."

"Gee, sis. Trust you to automatically assume the worst."

"Serah?!" Lightning spun around upon hearing her sister's voice. It was too good to be true, and in a way, she should have been more realistic, but she couldn't contain that one moment of hurt. When Janus slowly stepped out of the fog to reveal himself, Lightning felt her heart sink.

"Serah's not here, I'm afraid," Janus said with a lopsided smile. His hands in his pockets, he took in the fog before looking to Lightning once more. "But why did you assume the worst? It's almost as if…"

Janus stopped and looked past Lightning to the well. Walking past her, he pulled up a pail full of water and offered it to her.

"Now's the time to prove you have nothing to fear, commander. What's wrong? Afraid of a little water?"

"You must be a fool if you think I'm going to do what you tell me to do," Lightning replied with a sneer.

"I'm not telling you. It's just water." And as if to prove this point, Janus held the bucket to his lips and downed the contents. For some time, Janus continued to hold the bucket to his lips even though Lightning was pretty sure he had long since finished. She concluded that he was trying to make her look like an idiot for being suspicious of the water in the first place. Eventually he parted from the pail and gave a satisfactory sigh. "A shame you said no. It was pretty refreshing."

He tossed the bucket aside with his eyes still on Lightning and adjusted his orange tinted aviator glasses. Lightning felt exposed as she felt his eyes on her mask. Though he said nothing, Lightning could see his point. If he was just fine without a gas mask then she should be too. Slowly she reached for the back of her head with one hand and unattached the mask, lifting it away from her with the other.

"Lightning, you need to get out of there!" Enna suddenly interjected through her earpiece.

Lightning pressed her earpiece in. "And abandon the mission?"

"That man is dangerous. He's the head of Horus' covert ops division," Enna explained.

"Then even more reason for me to stand my ground. I'll take him right here and now," Lightning said, drawing her gunblade. She rushed forward and tried to strike upwards but Janus grabbed her weapon with his hand. Lightning's lips parted slightly, seeing a trickle of blood start to run down her blade.

"I'd strongly reconsider if I were you. You're a leader. People can't follow you if you're buried six feet under," Janus said, releasing her gunblade. Lightning backed away and he looked down at his palm. "Well, they can, but I doubt they'll be so eager."

"So then, where does that put us? Because I'm not leaving yet," Lightning said.

"It appears neither of us are," Janus said, turning around as the shadows of human beings began converging on the area. However, the closer they came, the more Lightning could tell they were anything but normal. Their eyes all held the same brilliant yet terrifying amber glow. On top of that, they were moving a little too in sync for her liking. Janus summoned a golden colored Keyblade with phoenix wings around the guard and the bottom of the blade. He looked behind his shoulder at Lightning. "Mind indulging me in the honor of fighting together?"

"You're so polite for a murderer. But I think I'll go with no. I fight better alone anyway," Lightning said. "And just what the hell is going on anyway? Are you behind this?"

"Do you think I'd still be here if I was?" Janus asked.

"Get out of our town!"

"No intruders!"

"Leave our home alone!"

Like an angry mob with a single unified voice, the crowd of people descended upon Janus and Lightning, both caught in the middle with their backs turned to each other. Janus was first to kick away one of the townspeople before swiping up the chest of another.

"Lightning, hold on! These people are-"

"I know what they are," Lightning cut Enna off as she aggressively cut into her enemies. She could have spent time hesitating and deliberating over the nature and motive of the townspeople, but that wasn't Lightning. "You may not like it but I don't live to please you or anyone else. If someone gets in my way, I won't hesitate to cut them down. As your commander, I can't back down now."

"But Light-"

Lightning pulled the earpiece from her ear and let it drop to the ground. Quickly jumping back into the fray, Lightning shot down a few of her enemies with her Gunblade. Transforming it back into a sword, she began moving away from the centre, mowing through her opponents with swings and stabs. Janus flipped backwards to gain some distance before pressing his left hand into the ground. There was a tremor only for the ground to cave in seconds later, taking a large amount of the crowd with it.

Janus turned around soon after to see Lightning backing away as she tried to fend off several clawing townsfolk. Janus Sonic Bladed in a diagonal line, dragging a few of Lightning's opponents with him. Lightning flipped away and threw a Thundaga mid-air, taking out the rest of her group.

Janus pulled his Keyblade under his arm and transformed it into a blaster. With a few shots, he took out the three he had taken of Lightning's hands.

Silence returned to the town once more. Janus turned around to meet Lightning who saw one of the townspeople making a last ditch effort to crawl towards Janus. Lightning brought her Gunblade above her shoulder and through it with pinpoint accuracy. The sword found its way lodged in between the man's eyes. He let out a final gasp and then was completely still.

Janus looked away from him and back to Lightning. "We make a pretty good-"

"You don't want to finish that sentence," Lightning replied as she knelt down to pick up the earpiece.

"My bad," Janus replied with a shrug. With his hands in his pockets, he stepped over a few of the bodies as he made his way to Lightning. "I don't know about you but I can't forgive this. We may be on opposite sides but surely our senses of justice in this situation mesh."

Lightning glared at him. "You really don't know when to give up, do you?"

"I see things through to the end. Same as you," Janus said with a smile. He turned his back on her. "I won't try to convince you, but if you intend on seeing this through, you know what to do."

As he walked off, Lightning behind her and took in the empty village. Rain struck the bridge of her nose, travelling down to the tip where it hung for mere seconds before dropping. She looked up. Rain… lost in endless fog. Now wasn't the time for indecision because the only path that resulted in was one where she wondered what could have been, and though this one may result in a fate much worse, she knew Janus was right. She was a person who saw things through to the end. Steeling her resolve but maintaining caution, Lightning set off after Janus.

* * *

 ** _The Road to Repose (Castle Basement), Radiant Garden_**

The door to Alfonso's cell opened with a loud whistle. Cautiously, Alfonso glanced sideways to take in June's form before continuing to stare back at the white wall in front of him.

"Come to keep me company?" he asked in a monotone voice. "Or is it another book for the week. I did take joy in the last book you sent me."

"What can I say? It's a big library," June said. She pointed to the book on his desk. "Azal?"

"One of the previous rulers of this town who sought to study the link between dreams and the unconscious mind. He had three volumes in total, all dedicated to his lofty ideals. I suppose they were not too outrageous of an idea. He named it the Linked Minds theory—that you could create a world in your dreams and that, since hearts are connected, one can step into the dreams of another, albeit unconsciously. The problem arises from managing to do it consciously. Many of Azal's subjects claimed to be able to step into another's dreams but of course, there is hardly any evidence to back that up."

"Liars then. Probably wanted to be in some newspaper. Looking for their one minute of fame," June said.

"It is as you say. Conscious or unconscious, neither theory has been proven. It's simply impossible to measure, and if it is possible to do it then it can't be forced. Azal continues to explore ideas like boxed dreams. If you've ever had a false awakening, where you thought you had woken up only to still be in a dream, then could you perpetually trap someone in a dream within a dream? Could you keep piling dream on top of dream? How would that affect the psyche of the third party's mind that had unconsciously entered the deepest level of that dream? Theoretically, you and I could be in such a dream right now. The giant playground of someone who had been dreaming for a long time. Or maybe when that person wakes up, the dream pauses. Of course, we would have no idea because pause along with it and resume when that person begins dreaming again. And this person has mastered the act of dreaming. He crafts this world meticulously and it is a dream so big that other hearts are drawn to it. What would you say to that?"

"I'd say you were on drugs, and that those hallucinogens I found in the lab upstairs have probably gotten to you." June said. It was a chord that struck deeply with Alfonso. He pushed the memories of Sabbat's injections into the back of his mind and focused instead on June.

June let out a laugh devoid of any intent, grinned and walked over, picking up the mustard colored book. "Still, I can't say the premise doesn't sound fun. Though if I did happen to find out I was in some person's dream, well… let's just say that once I got out of it, I don't think I could idly sit by knowing I was toyed with."

"As expected. Anyone who has the power to take action will take it. After all, if you're not in control of your life but you have power, that's just squandered potential," Alfonso said.

"Speaking of power, boy do I have something to show you. Real raw potential stuff. You won't want to miss it." June twirled around and backed out to the doorway, nodding her head along at him to follow.

Now it was Alfonso's turn to laugh. A stifle of laughter that could hardly contain itself and turned into a chortle.

"You treat me like a prisoner and you think I'll come at your beck and call? Sure you may have delivered a few books to my chamber and given me your leftovers from lunch but make no mistake I'm under no illusion that it's still a prison."

"Which is funny considering prisons are supposed to keep you trapped and away from society. I think you'll find that this 'prison'-" Before June could finish her sentence, the ground underneath them rumbled, June having to catch herself quickly to keep her balance. "Woah! Gee, and I told Irva not to start without me! Welp, guess we should hurry!"

In the end it was curiosity that won Alfonso over. He stepped through the divide between freedom and his confinement and, with some prompting from June, took the lead in walking down the corridor.

As soon as they entered the lift, June summoned her Keyblade and aimed it at the lift operation device. The device lit up and the elevator began to move upwards amongst the sound of hard-working machinery. Soon the elevator came to a stop and Alfonso and June stepped out. At the end of the room were stairs that took them outside.

"Kee-yah! This is awesome!" June rushed past a stunned Alfonso who could only stand on the spot perplexed by his current predicament. Clouds rushed past them, or perhaps it was more accurate to say that they rushed past the clouds, for the castle he was on was no longer where it had once been.

The castle had taken to the skies.

Also with him and June was the leader of Horus, Irva Torvald, the general of the Caladbolg division, Mari Seren, and two of the scientists who had worked at the castle previous, Even and Ienzo.

"You really couldn't wait for me, Irva? Okay, fess up, it was you, wasn't it Seren?" June glared at the voluptuous vixen.

Seren smiled and stood next to June, towering over the small girl. "You may be second-in-command but last I checked, you're not the be all and end all of Lord Irva's decisions. Trust me darling, your motives are as apparent as the cutesy act you put on to cover it. I may not have both eyes, but one is enough to see past your façade."

"Seren, you really don't like me do you? But that's fine, because I can't bring myself to hate you. You're not worth the energy," June said dreamily. Mari scowled at her but June ignored it and walked up to Irva. Seren soon turned her attention away and, upon noticing Alfonso, walked up to him.

"How do you like the view? This is engineering at its finest. An impenetrable fortress backed by a piece of Kingdom Hearts."

"So this is why you went straight for Radiant Garden. It's not enough conquering the land. You also have to conquer the skies…" Alfonso said.

"Radiant Garden was the birthplace of Horus. A town where the brightest light was to shine, so taking it was an obvious and symbolical first step, but we never laid our eyes off the true prize either. They do say the sky's the limit after all," Seren said. She looked around to see Irva and June heading towards them and backed up to stand beside Alfonso.

"We set course for Quartz Town. It's time to begin the reunification of the four factions under one rule and that starts with them witnessing our might," Irva said. "I'm putting Lieutenant Caster in charge while I take care of some last minute preparations. Seren, you're in charge of mobilising our forces. We shouldn't need them but in case we absolutely need to fight, be ready."

"Yes, Lord Irva." Seren saluted and placed her fingers on the bill of her hat to straighten it. "Do you know where General Sabbat is?"

* * *

 ** _Golden Gate_ Bridge _, San Fransokyo_**

The crackling and pops of the flames became more pronounced as Sabbat's eyes opened. He let out a soft groan and tried moving. This proved to be a big mistake as he felt a sharp pain in his side. Looking down, he found the source of the discomfort—a piece of glass, perhaps from a vehicle nearby, digging straight in.

Sabbat gritted his teeth and grabbed onto the shard. He closed his eyes shut tight, counted down from five and pulled. A low, animalistic growl resounded in the air. Panting heavily, he looked towards the shard clutched in his hand to see his own blood coated and dripping from it.

Dropping the shard, he looked around to see several bodies lying on the bridge. They were all people who had been in his Hauteclaire division. _Had_. It was all gone now. Everything he had worked to build. A force that had prided itself as the one that could even surpass the covert ops division, obliterated in mere seconds. He couldn't bear to think of what ridicule and mockery awaited him once he returned home.

Sabbat was about to force himself to stand up when he saw the shadow of someone approaching. He looked up to see a figure in a muscle suit and mask. Before he could ask who they were, the figure suddenly reached out and grabbed him by the neck and slammed him into the ground. Air struggled to escape from Sabbat's lips as Nil pressed his hand as deep as he possibly could into the older man's windpipe.

"You wanna keep breathing? You do exactly as I say," Nil said. Sabbat could only nod frantically in response.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the bridge closest to the city, Sora expressed relief and gratitude upon seeing Vyce and Salome again.

"So? Did you enjoy your swim?" Salome asked grinning.

"Now that you mention it, yeah. I really needed a swim," Sora played it off with a matching grin before asking, "So where were you guys? Too good to take on a giant sea creature?"

"More like we were held up by a few Horus members and police who thought we were with them," Vyce said.

"You didn't…"

"No, we didn't. If we're going to be working together at least have a little faith in us. Almost lost a limb to get there though," Vyce remarked.

"You guys with Sora?" Xion asked, coming up from behind him along with Namine and the Big Hero 6. She had gotten out of her armor although Sora wasn't sure where she could have hidden it. He would have to ask her about that and where she even got it later.

"Yeah. Xion, right? And Namine," Salome said.

Xion's face had a twinge of surprise upon hearing her name. "Oh, did Sora tell you our names already?"

"Not exactly. We're just good at gathering intelligence. We tried to kill this guy in the past, you know," Salome pointed out.

"The past? Oh, so you're all buddy-buddy now? You sure it's not too late? There's still time," Xion said sweetly.

"Woah there, are you actually encouraging them?" An overwhelmed Sora cried out.

"Hey, I don't think it's unfair to say that your life is an utter mess at the moment, my friend, and if you fight by him you're likely to get dragged into those messes," Xion said.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Sora replied sarcastically.

"Don't worry. It's not like we don't have messes of our own. Just the life of a Keyblade wielder, you know?" Salome buzzed in.

"See? This girl gets it," Sora said, raising his hand to high five Salome.

A small chuckle escaped from Xion's lips and then just like that she was back in serious mode. "Sora, I need to talk to you about something, but I need you to be in the right state to hear it. It's not just something you can come out with at any time. You're probably pretty tired, right?"

"Not to mention sore, yeah. How about we head back to the Wayfinders' HQ for now? The other members of Moira's Crescent are waiting for us there," Sora explained.

"I'll stay for a while then. There should hopefully be a van we can still use around here somewhere. I'm hoping to stay positive and believe that something can be salvaged out of this situation," Vyce said.

"Alright. Hey, Hiro!" Sora called out to Hiro and his friends. "We're heading off for now. Would you guys like to come with us?"

"I mean, my mom's probably gonna kill me if I'm back late," Fred told him.

"You still have a time you're supposed to be in? At your age?" Go Go asked with an unimpressed look.

"What? I do baking with her sometimes, okay?" Fred defended.

"Well, everyone but Fred should still be fine," Hiro said.

"Hold on. Why are you suddenly deciding what everyone thinks?" Go Go interjected impatiently.

"Because I'm the leader," Hiro said.

"Maybe, but I never said that I was interested either. I want to know what we're getting ourselves into. That thing we just fought is straight up the most insane thing we've fought so far. Are we going to get roped into more of that if we come along?"

"Well you deserve the truth so I'll tell you," Sora said. "This is a war we're fighting. Against those guys we were fighting on the bridge, against the group that woman on Leviathan was a part of. It's definitely going to be dangerous. Might even be the most dangerous thing you'll ever do," Sora said. "So if you can't handle that, it's fine. Thanks for your help with Leviathan."

"But-" Namine stepped forward to take over for him. "-there are places just like this one out there and they are hurting. You saw the darkness that we face for yourself when it tried to claw its way into your city and you all fought so hard to keep it at bay. Other places? They're not so lucky. They don't have a wonderful team of heroes who defend them with the passion and conviction that you do. You give up what could be a normal life and put your lives on the line for this city every day. I'm just hoping that selflessness and devotion can expand beyond the horizon that you've known your whole life. So please. Help Sora and his friends. The world is in danger and it needs all the help it can get."

"Namine…" Sora whispered in surprise. Her new seer powers really had played a part in her development. It was a slightly scary one at that, Sora had to admit. He had heard from her after he got back in full how she had orchestrated with Xion both of their captures because she had known that Sora would arrive beforehand. While it may have been a clever plan, there were so many ways it could have easily ended in failure as well. He just hoped Namine put sound judgement ahead of relying on her visions first and foremost.

Hiro nodded and walked around them with an eager smile. "Come on! I think we should do it. We always talk about making a difference and looking at things from a different angle. My brother believed in those things. Until now, I didn't even realize that could apply outside of this city, but now? I'm certainly ready to give it a shot. I know if Tadashi were here, he'd say that if we have the power to do it, then it's only our minds holding us back. What do you guys say?"

"You know what? Beats boring studying for exams any day of the week. I'm in," Wasabi said, wrapping his arm around Hiro and pulling him in.

"It doesn't really matter what your brother would say anymore. Those words come from your own feelings and I agree with them. Let's save the world!" Honey Lemon exclaimed enthusiastically.

"I am with Hiro. I, Baymax, will ensure that all of you remain safe," Baymax said, placing his hand on his inflatable chest.

"Woah, he talks! Nice to meet you," Sora said, his eyes bright with wonder as he analyzed the robot from his front and sides.

"I…" Go Go stopped when she looked back to see the hopeful faces of Hiro, Honey Lemon and Sora nearing closer. With a look of annoyance on her face, she thrust out her hand, making contact with Sora's face and sending him to the ground. "I'll come okay?! Sheesh."

Namine laughed and watched as Sora got up. "Then I think that settles it."

"Aw man. I'm about to miss something awesome, aren't I?" Fred groaned.

"I'm sure baking with your mom will be just as enjoyable. And we'll come back for you anyway so it's not like you'll be missing out," Wasabi said.

"Alright, here we go!" Salome summoned her Keyblade and held it in front of her, summoning a corridor of light to take them to Corona.

Hiro's mouth fell agape and he slowly walked towards it. "Woah, now this is something else! Is it magnets? Or- or maybe inducing gravity or colliding baryon and meson particles? But how's it containing itself in that shape without any barrier to contain it in? And how does it work? By transmitting molecules and all matter that enters through and recreating it on the other side?"

"Dude, it's just a portal," Salome said.

Hiro's face flushed red. "That too. Heh heh…"

After saying their goodbyes to Fred, the group departed through the portal and arrived by the forests of Corona. Sora grinned as the five members of the Big Hero 6 reacted in their own ways upon seeing a completely different locale. As they went through the town itself a lot of people reacted to their outfits and especially Baymax with expressions of shock and confusion. Baymax simply smiled and waved at them, oblivious to their fears, or perhaps he did sense them and sought to act as normal as possible in hopes of alleviating those fears.

Soon they reached Castle Corona to see the anxious face of Enna Kros. She didn't seem to notice them until they were really close by, but her worried expression concerned Sora. He didn't know her to be anything but a gleeful, positive sort of person.

"Enna, is something wrong?" Sora asked.

"Oh! It's um… I just needed some alone time is all. I don't do well being surrounded by walls," Enna said. "You're friends from Moira's Crescent arrived earlier, by the way. They should be in the council room with Yen Sid."

"Oh. Thanks," Sora said somewhat awkwardly as Enna went back looking at the lake. He supposed she couldn't be positive all the time. That wouldn't exactly be normal, although Sora had the feeling that word was lost on Enna Kros.

As Sora and the others took off again, Enna leaned off the railing and gave a resolute nod to herself. She had to help Lightning, whether she wanted the help or not. If Janus was involved, Lightning would need all the help she could get.

* * *

 **A/N: I do wish I could have uploaded something in time for Christmas, but I've been bogged down with work (that's retail for you) and other things so I hope you'll accept this late present. Anyway, before we head into a conflict between the Wayfinders and Horus, we still have some loose ends to tie up. Look forward to at least two more Disney worlds, the story behind Xion's armor and the conclusion to a certain conflict started in Cracks of the Past. Have a great day!**


	50. All The Time In The World

**A/N: As this will no doubt be the last chapter of the year, let's see it off with a bang and welcome in the year of Kingdom Hearts III... maybe... probably... nah, we have to remain confident, don't we? Most definitely! Anyway, let's get this show on the road, shall we?**

* * *

Chapter 49

All The Time In the World

"Bloomin' clocks! Can't go a single place in this town without hearing one. Why don't they just share?" Hattie asked. She was sitting on a boulder on a hill overlooking the clock-laden town, an half-eaten apple in her hand.

"It'd be awfully inconvenient, I guess? I mean, they've grown accustomed to each having their own for so long. You take that away from them and there'd probably be chaos on the streets," Aya replied, kneeling down next to her.

Aren, one of the people in Hattie's group, shook his head. "Still, trust the Lunarians to pick an annoying place like this to reside. They must have hoped the clocks would scare their enemies to death first."

"Well, we won't find them just standing here. Are we all ready?" Vera turned around to look at the group.

"Of course. Here's to hoping they welcome us with open arms," Aya said. She had to finish what she and Caleb had promised to finish. He may have lost his memory of her, of everything, but that was all the more reason she needed to go through with this. She just hoped she wasn't too late.

The journey on foot was strangely a mixed bag. After heading down the hill, they were just outside the town and while they never stepped foot inside it proper, they were able to get a good grasp of the average Quartzman. There was probably a law in place that every building needed a clock somewhere on its exterior. By the time Aya got to the other side, she had long since become tired by just counting the number of clock faces she had come across. Other than that, the people themselves seemed relatively normal other than the fact that they were more aware of time than most people would be. Every now and then she caught someone sneaking a quick look up at a clock as if they were all following a schedule and had somewhere to be at any given time. It all felt so precise, so calculated, so robotic.

"Hehe, I wonder what would happen if I messed with all the clocks and set them at different times," Hattie snickered.

"Don't you even. It would probably drive them cuckoo," Vera said.

"I mean, I wouldn't mind. At least it'll teach 'em to go digital," Hattie replied with a hearty laugh.

Another ten minutes passed and beyond the outskirts of the Quartz Town they finally spotted something of interest. It was a large estate, similar to a country house or chateau, sitting alone on the empty green plains.

From the gates, they made their way down the neatly trimmed garden of beautiful hedges and a variety of plants. They went through a small alcove with its stairs leading up to large oak double doors.

"Talk about ostentatious. I think they're compensating for something," Hattie said. She sort of had a point, Aya had to admit. Even if there wasn't a spy housed somewhere within this building reporting back to Janus, they weren't trying too hard to hide themselves.

Hattie reached out and struck the door with the iron knocker attached to it.

The door soon opened and a lanky but frail man who looked as if he could easily shatter if touched.

"Can I help you?" he enquired slowly.

"Uh, we're looking for the head honcho of this place? This is the Lunarians' place, right?" Hattie asked.

"I'm afraid I have no idea what you're talking about. This is the residence of Master Argentum and Lady Aranea," the old man said.

"Oh, we must have gotten the wrong number then. So sorry for interrupting whatever you were doing," Vera said with a smile. The old man gave one last suspicious look at the group before closing the door.

"Well that was a waste of our time, wasn't it?" Hattie declared with a huff.

"I really did think that this was it. I figured it was too easy," Aya said. "Alright, let's turn back. Maybe we can search the town for clues?"

As they turned around they came across a brown-skinned woman with long silver hair. "You really giving up that easy?"

"Who are you?" Vera asked.

"Not important yet. If you want to find the place you're looking for, you're going to answer a question of mine first. Don't worry, it's just a riddle," the woman said.

"Don't worry, she says. Pfft." Hattie shook her head and stood to the side. "Well, she's all yours. I'm pretty bad at these things so I'm no help here."

Doesn't mean you can't try to help, Aya thought in annoyance.

"I do my job even better the earlier I'm around. The wind can carry me but I always stay the same place, at least until my final hour's up. What am I?" The woman proceeded to ask.

"Err, something to do with time maybe?" Aya asked with a shrug.

The woman's brow raised. "Is that your answer?"

"Do I get another try if I say yes?" Aya asked.

"We won't need another try. It's the flame on a candle," Sarah Byrne murmured with her eyes still on her games handheld.

"I see we have another fan of riddles among us. Very well, you pass," the woman summoned her Diamond Dust Keyblade and pointed it at the lock on the oak doors. When the beam struck and hit the keyhole.

"Oh, I should probably introduce myself. My name is Holly, the leader of the Lunarians, though I imagine at least one of you suspected as much by now," she said looking to a slightly smirking Vera.

"Wait, Holly? As in the 'Shiva of the Winds' Holly?" Aya asked with her mouth agape.

"Sorry? Not getting the excitement," Avery said. Her left arm was wrapped in a cast after her unfortunate encounter with the Abyss Worm back on Treasure Planet.

"She single-handedly took down an entire Horus division after all of her teammates fell during one of the battles in the war. She's also known to exclusively use ice and wind magic but even knowing that, she can pull of some pretty amazing stuff that can still take you by surprise. To put simply, she's a badass," Aya explained.

"Style… and quite a bit of substance to boot? Color me intrigued," Hattie said.

"You flatter me but I really do owe it to those who died by my side," Holly said. She pressed a hand against the door and pushed it open. "Welcome to our world."

Light poured through the door, exposing its bright sunny halls and people pouring through the hallways like an uneven stream heading in different directions.

"Wait a second. Did that old man lie to us then?" Hattie asked.

"No, he probably didn't. This seems like some kind of cloaking or illusion magic, am I correct?" Vera asked Holly.

"Right on the money, honey. Alright, follow me." Holly turned left and kept to the wall as she made her way against traffic. Every now and then she was stopped and made short talk with one of the other people. Aya watched as people of all ages, although most of them mainly teenagers, walked past her. Some of them were carrying books while other hung around and cracked jokes with one another. All in all, it was a rather jovial and positive atmosphere, incredibly different to her time in Janus' Kitsune division. It reminded her of the old days at the Horus academy with her classmates.

They went through another set of double doors and arrived at a colonnade that, following led to another part of the building and straying from its path led to the gardens where they could see a few students sparring with each other or just chilling out by the fountains.

"This is some place you got here. You aren't accepting offers on selling it are you?" Hattie asked.

Holly put a hand under her chin and smiled. "What, you're interested? I'd sell to you but you know what? I'm a good judge of character. I'd say the atmosphere's a bit too tender for your liking."

Aya could see Sarah visibly flinch for a second under her eye and grinned. "So you like puns too? I don't think Sarah's a fan."

"Well I never intended to blow her away-"

"Stop already! I get it," Sarah muttered. Holly laughed before looking to Hattie.

"So who are you guys supposed to be anyway? A friend of mine saw your ship landing not too far from here. I guess the real question is, are you a friend, or an enemy?"

"They're from the Oberian faction. The only one who isn't is me. I'm from Horus," Aya said.

"I see," was all Holly said in response to what she said.

"But we've forsaken our unions because there's a much bigger threat looming on the horizon than the differences we've had in the past. Me and my friend deserted the Horus division led by Janus Harvey, the covert ops division, Kitsune," Aya said.

"You were in covert ops?"

"Surprisingly, yes. It was probably because I wasn't, and I'm still not I guess, good at direct confrontation. But what they say about us is true. I've even… assassinated someone before. It made me feel sick to my bones. My friend, Caleb… he saw that I was hurting from it and decided that we should run away. We got as far as to the town of Gravity Falls when I lost him. He… erased his own memory to keep me safe… even his memories of me."

Holly's hand unclenched and she looked outside. "I'm sorry. Is there any way to recover your friend's memories?"

"I don't know. If it does happen though, it could be ten years from now, or twenty, or maybe even more," Aya said. "But I'm not here to garner your pity. I want to tell you that we found out that Janus may have planted a spy within your ranks. I don't know who it is but you should be careful."

"You want me to be suspicious of my comrades?" Holly asked. "Aya, did it occur to you that you coming to me like this was exactly what Janus wanted?"

"What do you mean? We came of our own accord, I think-"

"No, that's not what I'm talking about. He wants to sow division among the Lunarians by making us doubt each other, right? It's a typical tactic to use. It's why Cephadalus and Oberian had a lot of problems when they were still united under one faction. If he can't tear us apart from the outside, then he could have just let you escape in hopes that you'd find us and tell us exactly what you just told me," Holly said.

"That's… a bit contrived, don't you think?" Aya asked.

"It doesn't seem like something Horus would do? But aside from that, the best thing really is to do nothing at the moment. While I don't doubt your claim, I can't risk sowing discord among my faction. Of course, if you had definitive proof as to who it was, that would be different, you understand?" Holly asked.

Aya nodded. "There's one more thing too. My friends who helped me after I lost Caleb, Sora and Luna are their names, they need your help."

"Sora? As in the boy who brought us back?"

"Did you get that dream too? It was just before we woke up, wasn't it?" Vera asked.

"Yes. It's strange that we all dreamed the same thing, although I suppose the workings of Kingdom Hearts are a mystery to us," Holly answered.

"I don't know about any of that but here's something I do know. Horus have gained control of Radiant Garden. Sora's friends are trapped in that town and they need our help," Hattie said.

"Okay," Holly said.

Hattie and Aya looked at each other before pulling of identical frowns. "Okay? We need your help."

"I can sympathize with the people of Radiant Garden, I really can, but you want us to march in on Horus soil and wipe them out, just like that? And what, lose half or more of the people in this academy in the process? It's been a couple hundred years, sure, but I still remember the final battle I was in as if it were yesterday. None of us want to go back to something like that, not even Horus. It's why you've left Horus, and it's probably why they left Oberian, isn't it? We're all tired of war."

"Then what do you call encroaching upon another's territory? Is that not an act of war itself? Horus have shown they've no intention of stopping with their goals. If not eliminating them, the least you can do is remind them of their place. You owe that to the smaller factions at least if what you say about not wanting to fight is true," Vera said.

"Right. Even you can agree that one faction holding too much power is a bad idea," Hattie agreed.

"It's not that easy. Even if I wanted to help you, I only have to show you a few of their-" Holly pointed at the group sitting on the grass laughing and playing with one another. "-faces for you to know how tired they all are. It doesn't help for morale when we remember the worst of the war like it was yesterday."

Hattie leaned in. "Well that's what you're here for, eh? Seriously, what kind of leader even are you? Your supposed to be the Shiva of the Winds yet it seems you're just plain soft to me," Hattie said.

"A change in perspective, I suppose. A useful trait to have if you want to be a leader," Holly said, sparking Hattie's anger.

"Was that a subtle dig at me? Because I have something just as subtle!" Hattie moved with her fist raised only to be pulled back both by Vera and Antonin, someone who had also been with them on Treasure Planet aside from Avery.

"Maybe we can settle down first and then talk about it some more? I know this would mean so much to my friends if I could convince you to help us so I'm going to keep trying my best," Aya said.

Holly beamed at her. "That's the spirit, sweetie. I'll listen to what you have to say if anything else."

Two days had passed by quickly and although Aya felt she understood more about the Lunarians, she failed to see any improvement in her talks with Holly. Holly was hesitant to put her members in danger and Aya could offer her no guarantees of their safety, which made things more difficult. It seemed that the Lunarians had fallen into isolation, cutting themselves off from the world in an effort to give their members peace of mind. After coming back with Vera, exhausted from talking with Holly and another member of the faction called Lucian, they reached their assigned bedroom and contemplated a different course of action.

"I think she's starting to crack," Vera said in a hushed tone.

"Really? Didn't seem like it to me."

"Guilt is a powerful thing. Even if she doesn't appear to be showing it, looking away from her values of protecting the world is eating her up inside. It's probably taking her everything to convince herself she's doing the right thing," Vera said.

"Then what if we just get her? We guarantee that the other members remain safe and she'll be a powerful ally for us. There's no one in Horus who hasn't heard of her name. Forget the ice magic, her presence on the battlefield alone will freeze them," Aya chuckled.

"Well just getting her would help us overcome one of her hurdles, but is it really wise to rely on one person? She may be an Ice Queen, but she's still human, just like us."

"Well… there have to be others within her inner circle who want to fight too, right? We'll try and talk to them. We might even find the spy we're looking for too," Aya said.

"But it could also be like Holly says. How did you even know there was a spy anyway?"

"Caleb told me. Well, he overheard Janus mentioning it to another person in the group and came and told me," Aya said.

Vera sat on her bed and massaged her temples. "Hmm, if he didn't know Caleb was listening in then it seems unlikely he said it as part of some multi-layered plan."

Aya plopped down on the bed next to her. "Right? It's not like he could have known we would have deserted. He's not a seer," Aya said. "So I have to take what Caleb's told me at face value. I can't bear to think that all we've done so far is a lie. That I haven't really run away at all."

* * *

"Mommy, I think there's something in my closet."

"This again? Sweetie, I promise you there's absolutely nothing there. Now go to sleep. It's about past your bedtime. Didn't we agree to stick by the time?" replied the mother to her frightened son. However, the child refused to go to sleep, continuing to stare at the closet with both hands wrapped tightly around his duvet, pulling the cover as close to his nose as possible.

The mother sighed and walked over to the closet and wrapped her hand around the doorknob. She pulled it open and gave a satisfied smile at her son before looking to the closet and letting out a scream of horror.

"Oh dear… Hey, it's okay! I know this seems really weird but it's not what you think," Luna said, pulling herself out ahead of Neuge. The older woman promptly followed only to have most of the things in the closet fall out with her. Luna spun around and aided Neuge in trying to keep the objects from falling out of the closet completely. Meanwhile, the stunned mother just looked on in confusion, conflicted between whether to cry on the spot or burst out in a fit of anger at the intruders.

"Wait, Luna, leave it for a sec. Leave it… there!" Neuge managed to slam the closet closed before the objects could fall and turned around to look at the mother. "Your kid has way too many toys. Is this Quartz Town, by any chance?"

The woman nodded and Luna grinned. "Finally! See? Told you I could pick the right door."

"After about the hundredth try, sure," Neuge said. As they were about to leave the bedroom, Neuge suddenly stopped and turned. "Oh, I probably should add that there's someone else coming through as well. Once she stops fawning over things. Just letting you know. Bye."

"What?" The mother could barely get out before the closet opened again and Eleftheria came crashing out along with most of the toys.

"Sorry. I'll clean it later!" Eleftheria promised before disappearing down the hall along with Luna and Neuge.

"Don't make promises you can't keep," Neuge said as they hurried down the stairs.

"I can't help it! Eww, I feel like a criminal right now!" Eleftheria squirmed.

"Hehe, we're actually turning you into a bad person right now. We're a bad influence, you know," Luna joked.

"Yeah, I kind of had my suspicions when you told me you broke into a jail once. I can't help but think you have a propensity for doing things like this."

"Oh, I don't do this nearly enough to call it a propensity. Give it a few years maybe," Luna replied.

The trio soon headed out of the door and into a word of clocks. As it the clock struck the hour, chimes went off in several directions. Luna even turned back to see a cuckoo clock going off in the house they had left.

"That absolute nutters, the lot of them. How can you even stand to live in a place like this? At least tell me this doesn't go all the way into the night," Neuge said after the chimes had come to a merciful end.

"I suppose if you've lived here for all your life, you become conditioned to it," Eleftheria said. "Imagine putting someone from this kind of environment into one without the focus on time? Ooh, my juicy article senses are tingling!"

"That… could be interesting?" Luna said with a look at Neuge who shook her head and looked elsewhere. "Still, that was pretty great thinking on my part using Monster's Incorporated to get here. I was really worried when you told me you couldn't get us there through a corridor."

"You're really laying it on thick, aren't you?" Neuge said. "More importantly, where even is the Lunarians hideout? I can't imagine we'll have much success finding it in the dark."

"It's not the most suitable of conditions, but I think we got enough rest back at the Radcliffe house. It should be pretty hard to hide a ship like the Brynhildr out of plain sight. Let's start by looking for that," Luna suggested.

* * *

Aya woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of footsteps leaving the room. She slowly turned her head and watched as the shadow disappeared from the small amount of light that poured through from the hallway. She sat upright and placed her feet on the ground, slowly standing up. Slipping through the slightly ajar door, she turned left and began heading down the hall, passing by other rooms where Lunarians were sleeping.

Slowing down near the next turn, she looked down to see the shadow sticking out from the corner. Aya took a deep breath and jumped out to see Sarah standing there and looking at her with an unperturbed look on her face.

She raised a brow. "Really? What is this, a horror game now?"

"Can you blame me? I thought you were… someone else."

"Nope, it's just me. Something which would have been obvious had you bothered to look to the bed next to you since, you know, I'm kind of sleeping there?" Sarah pointed out.

"You're right, you're right. Sorry," Aya apologized. Her eyes were soon drawn to Sarah's handheld. "Oh, did you want to play for a bit? Maybe we can play together."

"Um, that's alright actually. I…" Sarah suddenly paused and looked down at the screen.

Woah, this is strange. Why'd she go shy on me all of a sudden? Aya questioned inwardly with a pout.

"Can I tell you something?" Sarah asked timidly.

"Of course! Of course you can, Sarah. What is it?"

"I… found a few… people here who said they'd play with me," Sarah said carefully.

"Oh, you've made new friends already? That's surprising… I mean, not in a bad way! Just that you usually keep to yourself on the ship a lot." Aya said.

"Say it any louder, why don't you," Sarah replied exasperatedly.

Aya put both hands to her mouth. "Oh. Sorry."

"Anyway, you were hoping to find the spy, weren't you? That's who you thought I was?" Sarah asked.

"Yeah, but… obviously it's not you," Aya said.

"Or is it…?" Sarah said slowly before winking. She held the portable screen up to Aya so she could see what was on it.

"Err, what's this?" Aya asked, staring at the green string of text and numbers.

"It's code. You see, I figured that if there was a spy, they'd have to have a way of reporting back to Janus, right? I doubt they leave in and out as they please because that would be too risky. They must be using some kind of wireless signal to communicate with him. So using my Keyblade's hack functionality, I hacked into my device and installed a homebrew app that allows me to run a program I created that allows me to locate other wireless signals in the area."

"Okay, okay… but what does it do?" Aya asked. Sarah's smile disappeared from her face causing Aya to feel as if she had just punched her.

"Well, I always say that showing is better than telling. All I need to do is execute the program like so and-"

"Why are you trying to kill it? What'd it do to you?"

"You.. are really trying to die on a hill, aren't you?" Sarah asked. She looked down at her screen and frowned. "Weird…"

"Is something wrong?" Aya asked.

"The signal's being scrambled. Sheesh, is he jamming the communication somehow? Or maybe-"

"Aya! Sarah!"

The two both looked down the hallway to see Luna running towards them with Holly and two other people she had never seen before.

"Luna!" Aya was caught off guard by Luna throwing herself at her and had to quickly redistribute her weight to keep them both standing.

"Woah! I know it's only been a few days but still, it's so good to see you again. Where's Sora?" Aya asked.

"He went off on his own little thing. Not even a goodbye," Luna said.

"Well, if you see him first, give him a good punch for me will you. He's your boyfriend! He shouldn't be running off on you like that," Aya said.

"Will do. But yeah, we were just kind of wandering around in the plains when some guards found us and brought us here," Luna said, looking at Holly.

"I'm glad you could be reunited. I've been having some of the guards keep track of the Brynhildr so when they saw these three near it, they alerted me and I arrived not too long after," Holly said.

"Oh, this is my master, Neuge, and a friend of mine from Alexander who's a journalist-"

"Ace journalist," Eleftheria corrected.

Luna rolled her eyes. "Alright. Ace journalist Eleftheria Hollenbeck. Anyway, if we had a hard time coming here and I can't even begin to imagine how Sora would be able to. We had to go a really roundabout way to get here."

"It was pretty tough for us too, though we had to drop Balthier and Fran off first," Aya said.

"Err, guys?" Sarah called out to them. Luna and Aya gathered in front of her and looked down at the screen to see a rather ominous message written in the center: _**Would you like to play a game?**_

"Err, isn't it normal for a games console to ask if you want to play a game? Please say yes," Aya said with a look of discomfort etched on her features. Suddenly, the screen changed its message again: _**Was that a yes?**_

Aya panicked and started shaking her head frantically. "No! No! That was definitely not a yes."

 _ **Understood. Beginning game.**_

"Huh?" squeaked Aya. Suddenly the screen flashed bright, forcing Luna, Aya and Sarah to look away.

"Luna!" Neuge yelled, but by the time she reached what was left of them, she was staring only at a handheld console lying on the ground.

* * *

 **A/N: *Snicker* Master Argentum and Lady Aranea... what? It's my fanfiction! Doesn't matter if it doesn't actually happen. Anyway, the next chapter will see Luna, Aya and Sarah go into the world of Black Mirror- err, Wreck-It Ralph to try and solve the mystery of the wacky virus that's hijacking Sarah's totally-not-a-PSP. See you... in 2018.**


	51. All Things Sweet And Sour

**A/N: It's another year and another chapter of Kingdom Hearts to go along with it. This time it's one of my favorite Disney movies set some time after the events of the first film. Also I had no idea until recently that the sequel to this film already had a title. I didn't even know it was coming out this year but from the various impressions from what they showed at D23 back in July, it sounds like it'll be pretty good. But first, time for some more character development.**

* * *

Chapter 50

All Things Sweet And Sour

"So, let me get this straight. You're telling me the one responsible behind this attack was a kid in your group who cracked like an egg under stress?" Lighting asked. Janus had supposedly located the traitor as hiding somewhere within the mountains near the town.

"It's not uncommon, especially on those who suffer from conflict at the heart of their actions," Janus said.

Lightning didn't need a lecture on the subject. It was a case of post-traumatic stress disorder, and a rather extreme one at that. Guilt. Isolation. All of those things must have weighed heavily on his mind. But even if that were the case, Lightning wasn't sure that she could take Janus' words at face value. She had found it just a little too coincidental that she had come across him around the same time she had first arrived in town. He was still her enemy, and she reminded him of that through her actions. Stating slightly back and keeping a close eye on him, keeping a hand on the hilt of her gunblade at all times… The moment they found the culprit behind the chemical attack on Pechelney, the sooner she could strike when Janus least expected it.

"I do wish you'd be a tiny more comfortable around me. You're making me sad," Janus said.

Lightning snarled. "Then be sad. I'm not here to appease a murderer."

"Murderer? And who exactly have I murdered? Those villagers don't count, although if they do you're just as guilty as I am," Janus said. "That said, I'm under no illusions either. When I was in Oberian, I did terrible things to people. If there was anything I was good at, it was being a damn good interrogator. Perhaps too good at it. When I was just starting out I didn't know when to stop. I kept going and going, and the results proved often disastrous. And you know what the worst part was? To this very day, I believe some of those people I tortured were truly innocent."

"You really are a monster. You disgust me," Lightning said.

"Then am I to believe that there is nothing you would do for someone you loved? If there was even the slightest chance you could save them, wouldn't you be prepared to risk your humanity?" Janus asked.

"That's a completely different context than what you just described."

"Is it? I never said I didn't have someone worth risking my humanity for," Janus said. "As a leader yourself, I'd expect you to understand where I'm coming from. If you want to keep the people you love safe, difficult choices have to be made regardless of whether those within your circle understand them or not. That's what war does. It tests how loyal we can be to each other even when our opinions differ so greatly."

Janus soon came to a stop and looked to the mountains across the ravine. Lightning looked past him to see a figure sitting against a rock, curled up into a ball.

"You can stop pretending you don't exist, Darran. I can see you quite well," Janus announced. The boy's head jolted in their direction and Lightning flinched. She could already tell by his twitchy state that there was definitely something wrong with him.

"Stay back! Don't come any closer! I… I can't do this anymore! I can't!" the boy yelled, summoning his Keyblade.

"Now hold on there. How about we take a few deep breaths and try to talk this out like fellow comrades in arms, hmm?" Janus asked.

Darran shook his head and continued to do so as he spoke. "I… can't do this anymore! I don't exist. None of us do! We shouldn't be here... I should be dead! I died! I- I know it!"

"Listen to yourself! You're here in front of me, flesh, blood and all. Do you not see that your fears are irrational? As long as I see you and you see me, we exist, I assure you."

"That- that may be true but…" Darran's slightly more comforted look faded however upon noticing Janus slowly taking steps forward, a frightened look overcame his pale complexion. He aimed his Keyblade and shot a fire spell in front of Janus' feet, stopping him in his tracks. "No! No, no, no, no, NO! This is… so messed up… DON'T COME ANY CLOSER! I'm sick… of all the secrets… the lies…"

"Would there be any point in lying to you? At this point you know about as much as I do about this strange new world we've stepped foot on. Whatever lies were said, whatever secrets kept, they don't matter anymore. Lies may be exposed for what they really are or kept lies forever, but regardless of the outcome, life moves on. It's time we do as well," Janus said.

"That's not true! Everything comes back to haunt us eventually. Everything! Those people I killed in the war, _hehe_ … they're still haunting me now. No, no, no, the war isn't over. Not to those of us who don't, or can't, hide beneath a façade of… bullshit!"

Janus nodded. "Well I give you that. What I wouldn't give to peel back the curtains on this charade and have others see reality for what it truly is… Maybe I'm not the best person for you to speak to at the moment. Lightning, will you do the honors?"

"I know I chose that nickname, but hearing it from your mouth makes me want to take it all back," Lightning replied. "And why do I have to comfort one of your own? What was all that talk about leadership earlier?"

Janus tutted. "Now, now, Lightning, I don't think now's the time to argue. Do you?"

"Do that again. I do dare you," Lightning whispered through her teeth. She looked back to Darran. "If you say you're sick of lies, then that means you have no reason to lie to me, right? Those people in the village, what did you do to them?"

"The villagers… they needed an out too. An out from the lies. I could see it in their eyes. Men, women, children… all desperately trying to make sense of the world. Of the lies. I granted that to them. The true light? That thing we seek? What we all fought over? I finally understand. It can only be found in deepest darkness. And what's a darkness deeper than death?"

"You don't have to do this. It's clear to me that you need help and this is your way of screaming to those who haven't listened all this time. I can't forgive your actions and you'll most likely be rebuked for what you've done, but at least it's not an end. It's a beginning to getting the help you need," Lightning said.

The young man gritted his teeth, tears flowing from his eyes. "It's so hard. It's this world! It's made me like this!"

"And you hate what you've become? Then help us make the world better, and you in the process. I know that we can figure something out but you need to meet me halfway for that to happen, okay?" Lightning extended her hand and gave him a small smile. The truth was she wasn't sure whether she could do much for him. His attack on an entire village had left doubts in her mind as to whether there was a normal life waiting for him at the end of this.

"You… promise you can help me?" Darran asked.

"I can listen. I know that's something you desperately need. We can go from there," Lightning told him.

Darran wiped away his tears and slowly began to make his way down the steep slope of the mountain and across the ravine's bridge.

"Well done, commander. Very impressive. It looks like you are leader material after all," Janus said as Darran reached them. He placed a hand on Darran's shoulder. "You've been a good soldier, but I suppose I can only ask so much of you. For that, I am truly sorry. Thus, I free you from a chain of lies."

"General… UGH!" Darran let out a sudden gasp as Janus plunged his Keyblade into Darran's stomach and pulled him closer in.

"What the hell, Janus!" Lightning yelled, but Janus ignored her, instead leaning towards Darran.

"It's okay, it's okay. Don't fight it. I hope you find your true light," Janus said. Darran's body soon fell limp and he lowered him onto the ground.

"What the hell was all that for if you were just going to do that from the start?" Light asked.

"Did you seriously think I was going to let him get away with the genocide of an entire village? Trust me when I say I did him a favor. He was right. No one can escape the past. Try as he might to run from it, what he did to this village would someday come back to haunt him. And besides, I really can't forgive something as senseless as this," Janus said.

"That's beside the point. He trusted you. Even to the end," Lightning said. "And I didn't here it from him, but I'm pretty sure he didn't get chemical weapons from nowhere."

"Was it that obvious? That's how I figured out there was a deserter in the first place. The chimera formula, which had been provided to me by Xanatos, had seemingly disappeared from the warehouse. In hindsight, I suppose I should have stored them in a more secure location-"

Lightning drew out her gunblade and aimed it at Janus. "Then you admit you're at least partly responsible for this happening?"

Janus let out an incredulous laugh. "Oh, come on. Look at you trying to pull a quick one on me. Just what are you trying to accomplish?"

"Justice, for those you've hurt. Including him," Lightning said.

"Justice is a complex concept. It is uniquely human in that there are as many ways to inflict 'justice' as there are people with different opinions. A man steals bread from a bakery. I know of a few good places where the punishment for that is cutting off one of your fingers, or maybe even more. Does that sound like justice to you? How will your justice be seen by others?" Janus summoned his Keyblade and held it out to his side, summoning a corridor of light. "Try as you might, shifting responsibility onto me is just another way of averting your gaze from the truth." "Now you know what it takes. Do you have the guts to do what others are unwilling to do? Welcome to the front line, commander."

"Stop!"

Janus and Lightning looked behind them to see Enna Kros running towards them. She soon stopped and bent over to catch her breath.

"Enna Kros, so you were the one who was talking to Lightning. You're too late. I've already finished what I came here to do," Janus looked glanced over at Lightning. "Do think about what I said, Lightning. I'm sure someone else among us knows a thing or two about making tough choices."

With that, Janus took his leave into the light. Enna raised her hand and ran for the portal but was too late. The corridor closed, leaving Enna's arm hanging in the empty air.

"He got away…" she eventually said.

"I can see that," Lightning replied. She looked down to where the young boy's corpse lay before looking back up at Enna. "And if my ears didn't mislead me, you and him have some kind of history too?"

"You could say that, yeah. I'm glad you're alright, Lightning," Enna said.

"You're not just going to leave it at that, are you? If you know something about our enemy then you owe it to me to tell me," Lightning said.

"Even if I tell you, you mustn't fight him. In the end, Sora and his friends are really the only ones who can," Enna said.

Lightning frowned and moved closer in. "I'm sorry, I didn't choose to become a commander just to be told I'm inferior to some kid. You think I can't take him?"

"You can't," Enna replied, looking directly into Light's eyes. Light winced as if she had just been hit. Eventually she regained her composure and pushed past Enna, starting back for the village.

"Once we get back to the castle, you'll tell me everything."

* * *

The smell of sweet treacle, cake and other confectionery became more pronounced as Luna woke up. Her first thought was that she was back in Aunt Kit's bakery. Her expectations of seeing the only mother figure in her life fell flat however upon noticing the incredibly garish scenery that lay before her.

"Holy mackerel…" Luna whispered, her breath stolen as she took in a land covered in chocolate, sugary delights, candy cane and more. Slowly, she raised her hand and slapped herself on the cheek. "Nope. Not dreaming. Oh, I hope I'm not dreaming…"

Picking herself off from the ground, Luna looked down at the pink wafer biscuit styled road as she made her way over to a lake of what seemed like black bubbling water at first. She knelt down, summoning Dream Seeker and dipped it into the lake before pulling out, watching as the liquid dripped off her blade and onto the ground.

Deciding to take a chance, Luna set her Keyblade on to the ground and placed one hand in the black water. So far so good. She gave a sigh of relief when no pain came. Using her other hand, she cupped a sizable amount in her hands and brought it to her mouth.

"Mmm!" Luna hummed, a smile spreading on her face. What she had thought was probably tasteless instead tasted a lot like cola. Not even like. It was cola. "Not sure my parents would approve. Wait… how did I even end up here anyway? Wait… the games console?"

Before she could fully follow through with this line of thought through, she heard high pitched screaming coming from nearby.

Frantically, Luna hurried off in the direction of the distress call. Heading into a forest of candy cane trees, she soon came across Aya's waist and below submerged in a pit of quicksand, with the rest of her body sinking slowly by the second.

"Luna? Luna! I can't move. I can't-"

"It's okay! Don't panic. Um, let's see, let's see…" In spite of her words, Luna was probably panicking just as much as the girl who was actually in danger. Looking up, Luna noticed a group of purple vines hanging from the trees. The vines however had the strangest feature in that it seemed like they were almost breathing.

"Maybe I can, err, do this?" Luna aimed Dream Seeker up at the vines and shot a fire spell at one. Suddenly, the purple vines sprang to life and hissed before retracting even higher into the trees.

"Wait-wait-wait! No!" Luna said. A frown appeared on her face and she let out a huff. "Fine then! Be like that! Who needs you anyway? Not me, nuh-uh! Now if you excuse me, I have a friend to save while you weird things hang around doing jack squat!"

"Luna? I'm sinking?" Aya reminded her.

"Right. Sorry." Luna walked over to the edge and knelt down, sticking her Keyblade out so Aya could grab onto it. Aya extended her arms forward but her digits missed the Keyblade by mere inches each time they tried to grab it.

"Hee-yah!"

Luna was barely able to turn before she was tackled to the ground by Sarah. Still dumbfounded by what was even happening, Luna tried to push the girl away but Sarah continued to latch onto her.

"Wha- are you doin-? Gerroff me!" Luna tried to fight the crazed girl off, but still to no available. As this was happening, she failed to notice the vines returning to the ground, curious as to the commotion. As they began snickering at the two girls fighting, the vines extended down to the point where Aya could grab onto them, allowing them to pull her up.

Sarah snuck a quick peak at the vines before rolling off Luna and shaking her head.

"Wow, you got me on the lip there real good. You couldn't have held back?" she said to Luna.

"Not when a wild crazy girl is attacking me all of a sudden. What was that all about?" Luna asked.

"It was super effective! Look." Seemed to drop back to her usual unenthusiastic self as she pointed at the swamp. Standing there was a widely grinning Aya, waving as the vines retracted back up into the trees.

Turning around, she showed off her pearly white teeth. "I kind of want to jump in there again just so they can save me. That was pretty fun!"

"Well don't, because I won't save you next time," Sarah said.

"Woah! This is crazy. You two look like video game characters. Check out the polys on you guys," Luna said with a whistle.

"Well we are in a video game. You look the same," Sarah pointed out.

"No way. Seriously?" Luna looked down at her arms and grinned. Soon enough however, that smile disappeared and a look of dread came over her. "Wait, we're in a game."

"Thanks for the clarification," Sarah replied sarcastically.

"No, no, I mean… so, we entered your handheld somehow and we were transported here? But where is _here_? How did we even end up here? How do we get out?"

"I did a bit of exploring before I found you guys and this place… well, it's probably better for you to see for yourself," Sarah said as she started to walk in the direction Luna had come from. "As for how we ended up here, I think some strange virus hijacked my console. You saw the message that appeared before, right?"

"Yeah. Would you like to play a game, right? Like some freaky thing out of a horror movie," Aya recalled as she and Luna followed after Sarah.

"I wasn't aware viruses could suck you into games," Luna said.

"Which means it may be more than that. We'll just have to investigate," Sarah told them. And that included figuring out how to get out of here, Luna mentally added.

Sounds of cheering and yelling could be heard as the trio of Keyblade wielders neared their destination. After scaling a giant gummy bear, Luna sat to the right of Aya and Sarah and watched as, one after another, cars as vibrant as the world they were in sped past the finishing line for another lap on the racetrack.

"Oh, it's all just so sickeningly cute. I love it!" Aya squealed.

"So… if I were to eat this gummy bear or anything else here, what would it taste like?" Luna asked, staring at the giant monitor at the top of the stands currently displaying the race.

"Well, as long as your brain thinks it's real, it will probably taste like something. Some things might not have taste though or they might taste like something else you're familiar with because you have no experience with that thing in real life. Your brain probably digs up something that looks similar to what you're eating and replaces what it actually tastes like with what you expect it to taste like," Sarah said.

"Ah, so it's kind of like a placebo effect? That's kind of weird when you think about it. It's artificial, but it still feels real. Kind of like that one movie with the matrix," Luna said.

"But here's the better question. If I eat all this, will I get fat?" Aya asked.

"Alright, enough talk about eating virtual code already! You can have real food when you get back," Sarah whined.

Luna was about to apologize when Artemis suddenly materialized by her side.

"I sense it. The same sensation I felt when we were on the ship heading for Treasure Planet. That heart piece is definitely here somewhere."

"I suppose it's a good thing we got sucked in then," Luna grumbled. As Artemis disappeared, her attention turned back to the monitor displaying the ongoing race. The camera excitedly flew in and out of the action as karts performed advanced tricks on ramps and battled each other using items from boxes placed randomly on the track. The cartoony nature of it all was enough to keep Luna relaxed, even if possible danger lurked beneath the surface of the cheery atmosphere.

About a minute after seeing them, the cars came back around the corner, heading towards the finishing line. Luna found herself cheering along with Aya as the two leading racers were neck and neck as they raced towards the finishing line.

"Sugars and sugettes, this could be a close one! Can Taffyta be the one to finally wrestle away control of the title from the undisputed queen… err, princess, of the track and end her impressive winning streak?" the announcer boomed through her mic.

"Of course I will," Taffyta Muttonfudge muttered under her breath. She looked down at the item she had been saving from one of the present boxes she had collected. It was the exact item she needed to ensure her victory.

As she was about to engage the speed boost that would lead her to victory, something strange happened to her kart. A frown appeared on Luna's face as she witnessed the unusual incident. For a split second, Taffyta and her kart seemed to tear, with her top half and the kart's bottom half misaligning. Soon the frames realigned, but it had been enough to get the other racer slightly ahead of Taffyta.

"Huh? Whatever." Taffyta looked back down at her item only to find it missing. "What?!"

Her lack of item, and the stumble that had resulted from her confusion, had been enough to put a slight gap between the leading racer and Taffyta, and soon enough the race came to the end.

"That was incredible, folks! It was a tight race but Princess Vanellope von Schweetz managed to sweep the win from under Taffyta Muttonfudge's feet to maintain her stunning twenty-five victory streak!" The announcer yelled. The monitor changed to show a list of names as they crossed the finish line.

"What was that?" Aya asked.

"I'm not sure. It looked like her model kind of just derped for a second," Luna replied. "Uh, Sarah… would you say it's normal for a racer to win so many matches in a straight row?"

"Why are you asking me? Though, sure it can happen if that's what you're asking. I know if I played you thirty races in a row, I'd win every single time."

"Hey, I'm not THAT bad," Luna said.

Sarah continued on with her explanation. "Of course, I'm not playing right now, and neither is anyone else. These characters right now are NPCs."

"NPC?" Aya asked.

"Non-playable characters. I guess it's like when you start the Sugar Rush game, if you wait long enough on the screen that says press start, you get a little demo you can watch of the characters racing. They don't really have those in games nowadays but this game is a port of the same game that was first released in arcades," Sarah told them.

"Was choppy frames a feature they added to the port by any chance?" Luna asked, watching as the racers all walked back into the stadium with dejected looks on their faces. All of them except for Vanellope anyway, who jumped up and down, indulging in the crowd's admiration for her.

"They're not even questioning what just happened. It's like they didn't see it at all. Urgh, that just frustrates me!" Aya voiced her displeasure.

"Well the crowd literally consists of lollipops and jawbreakers. I'd be surprised if they were anything but disgustingly sweet," Sarah said.

"Maybe it isn't just _like_ they didn't see it happen. Let's catch up with that girl. Ask her what happened out there," Luna suggested.

Silently agreeing with her, Aya and Sarah followed Luna onto the track and easily made it across due to the crowd's attention being centered on Vanellope. Heading into the hallway, they reached the changing rooms and entered the one to the left to see a whole cast of characters, and none of them in a particularly good mood.

"You know, maybe she's really just better than us? I just can't believe after everything we've been through, that she'd result to cheating," a girl with a candle on her head said.

"And there's no reason for her to do it, unless you guys are still bullying her," added the girl with the rainbow afro.

"No way! Vanellope is cool… or I thought she was," said a boy who had a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup on his head.

" _Princess_ Vanellope. Knowing how high and mighty she thinks of herself now, she'd probably go all off with our heads if we don't address her like that," Taffyta said with her arms folded. "Be honest with yourselves—have any of you had even the smallest bit of fun since this whole thing started? Rancis excluded of course since we all know he never wants to win anything."

"Hey, that's not true! I always try my hardest to win," Rancis, the boy with the Peanut Butter Cup, quickly denied.

"Guys, it appears we have guests," a girl with a stereotypical Italian accent said, pointing at the doorway where Luna, Sarah and Aya were standing.

"Sorry, but we couldn't help but be curious. We were wondering what happened to you down on the track? Did you notice anything wrong?" Luna asked.

"Who's asking?" Taffyta rudely snapped at her.

"Now, now, Taffyta. Maybe they can help us," said the girl with the cherry motif. "My name is Jubileena Bing-Bing, but of course you already knew that."

"I didn't-"

"Of course we did! Swizzle Malarkey, Taffyta, Candlehead, Rancis Fluggerbutter, Snowanna Rainbeau, Adorabeezle Winterpop, Jubileena, Crumbelina DiCaramello, Gloyd Orangeboar and my favorite, Minty Zaki," Sarah introduced eagerly to Luna and Aya.

Minty Zaki clapped her hands excitedly. "Yay! I have a fan. Well, of course I do. I'm awesome!"

"Well I'm glad one of us is keeping track of the names. I know I've already forgotten most of them," Aya muttered under her breath.

"Aya, she's meeting characters she's spent a lot of time with just looking at a screen. You know how many of us would love to go into a fictional world and just hang out with our favorite characters?" Luna whispered to her. She smiled upon seeing the fire in Sarah's normally dull eyes. "She's living the dream right now. I'm so happy for her."

"I know. It's just that whenever I think of their names, it makes me want to eat them more than remember them, you know?" Aya said.

"That's kind of creepy but alright," Luna said with a grimace. She looked over to Taffyta and asked, "So did you notice anything strange?"

"Strange? Like an item I had that could win the race suddenly disappearing from my inventory kind of strange? Yeah, I did. There's no way Vanellope didn't have something to do with it."

"Do you know that for a fact or are you guessing?" Luna asked.

A look of uncertainty appeared on Taffyta's face. "Well… not necessarily. But I don't need proof! She definitely did it. Everyone here knows this game has changed ever since she started winning match after match. Anyone with half a brain can see that something's up."

Luna nodded before next asking, "Did you try talking to her about it?"

"Adorabeezle and I totally did. Guess what she said? 'You guys need to stop being sore losers and do better next time'. Like seriously, what kinda motivation is that? She's totally wack!" Snowanna exclaimed.

"Hmm… you think she just misses that big guy she always used to hang out with?" Candlehead asked.

"Big guy?" Aya repeated with a quizzical look.

"He came in from a different game but he helped her overthrow the previous illegitimate ruler of Sugar Rush, King Candy. Maybe if he came back, she'd have a change of heart," Adorabeezle said.

"A different game… what was it called?" Sarah asked.

"Fix-It Felix, Jr. I think. But there's not really a way to get there that I know off. Unless…"

Sarah leaned in. "Unless…?"

It was Swizzle Malarkey who spoke. "They say that there's a mountain east of here that, if you reach the top, there's a portal that can take you to the world outside which connects all the game worlds. They call this portal The Cloud, but if you ask my opinion? It's just a bunch of malarkey."

"The Cloud? I guess we'll have to take our chances then. If there's a chance it will get us closer to Vanellope then we'll have to take it," Luna said.

"There's just one _teensy_ little problem," Jubileena emphasized. "The mountain that's supposed to go there is a race track. An unused one from before the launch of the game."

"If you're going that way you need karts. And I'd loan you mine except that I worked really hard on that bad boy so… you know," Minty Zaki said nonchalantly.

"Oh, then how do we go about making karts?" Luna asked.

"The kart bakery is where we all made ours. I can show you guys if you want," Candlehead offered.

Sarah, unable to contain her excitement, let out a wide grin. "Yes, please!"

It took five minutes to reach the factory from where the arena. Arriving at the door, Candlehead pushed it open and proceeded to bow to them.

"Your royal chariots await," she declared.

"Thank you," Luna said. She was about to step in when Sarah ran in before her. She flashed Aya a grin before stepping in as well. This took her to a round room with multiple holographic displays in front of curtains around the room all showing the words 'Select Your Kart'.

"I guess this is where we part for now, huh? I'm gonna make a kart that'll blow you away," Aya said, backing into her choice curtain.

"That's where you'll be wrong. Not to brag but I've got imagination," Luna hit back. Aya stuck her tongue out before parting the curtains like she was in a fashion show and walking through. Luna laughed and headed over to the curtain to the left of Aya's. "Alright. Just how hard could designing this thing be anyway?"

As she went through the curtains, she immediately stopped and the color drained from her face. She had no idea what she had expected when Candlehead had mentioned a kart bakery, but she hadn't expected an actual baking process involved in making the karts.

"Oh, Aunt Kit, save me now," Luna croaked weakly before stepping forward.


	52. An Unfair Game

**A/N: Yeah, this chapter was my personal hell. Not only is it the longest chapter I think I've ever written, it still doesn't conclude the Wreck-It Ralph segment of this story. Doesn't help that there's so many things you can do with Wreck-It Ralph either. I found myself constantly starting and stopping with the writing for this one. Oh well, it happens, right?**

 **Oh, and I don't own Pac-Man, by the way. Just letting you know in advance. I don't own Kingdom Hearts either, of course. I do own the collections on PS4 though. Does that count?**

* * *

Chapter 51

An Unfair Game

Daylight snuck in through the cracks of the door as it slowly parted for Luna to drive through.

"Uh, how does this thing… go-AAH!" Luna shot forward as she placed one foot on the gas pedal, emerging from the bakery and onto the open road. Her teeth gritted, the kart jerked left and right as Luna frantically fought with the wheel, an act made much more difficult by her panicked state.

"Use the breaks!"

Luna turned to see Sarah driving on her right. Her kart was covered in a rainbow of skittles with flying saucer sweets for wheels. Luna almost felt bad for her more simplistic choice of a white icing frame with sprinkles added in.

"Breaks? Breaks, breaks…" Luna whispered to herself, looking down at her feet. Noticing the pedal near the one she was pressing down on, she placed her other foot on that too. The kart skidded on the side of its wheels and came to a stop next to the guardrail.

Luna closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief only to open them again to see Aya leaving her door. Luna snickered at the sight of Aya's car. It resembled something she may have considered art many moons ago… back when she was in preschool. Blotches of red, blue, yellow and green paint were plastered all over the frame of the car while its wheels, perhaps its most regular feature, resembled rolo candy.

"You going for the avant-garde look there?" Luna asked, unable to contain her laughter.

"Shut up! It's not about how it looks, but how it rolls that matters, ya dig?" Aya replied.

"Alright, that's enough, you miserable saps. It's clear you both have no sense of style. Let's get going to that mountain, shall we?" Sarah said in a tone that reminded Luna much of her older sister, Hattie.

Luna cast Aya an amused smile. "She's not wrong. Shall we?"

Meanwhile, in a room fit for a princess, Vanellope plopped until her bed and kicked about excitedly. After a fit of laughter, she sat up and stared at her dressing table where a pulsating pink object lay.

"Is everything to your liking, Princess Vanellope?" a voice resonated through echoing whispers in the room. The first time she had heard this voice, it had been chilling enough to where she had wanted to stay anywhere but within the same location as it. However, something about it, be it its warmth or beauty, drew her back to it. Soon enough she had found herself talking to the voice, and the more she talked to it the more she began to feel a sense of familiarity and comfort from it.

"Of course it is! You're here, silly. It's hard to feel lonely when you're around." Vanellope took hold of the heart and brought it to her bed, holding it in her arms like a teddy bear. "The race today was really close. For a second, I almost thought I'd lose to Taffyta but it looks like my slick driving skills came through in the end. Vroom vrooom!"

As Vanellope pretended she was driving with the heart as the wheel, the voice responded, "I'm glad you're happy, Vanellope."

Vanellope brought her hands and the heart to her chest, her smile fading. "You know, I thought things would change when I became something that wasn't just a glitch. I thought they'd all appreciate me, but in the end I've just become even more suspicious of them. Like, I can't help but wonder if they're taking advantage of me because I'm a princess. Does that make sense or not?"

"You wonder if they appease you because they fear your importance, as opposed to the makings of a real friendship. That is an understandable fear to have," the voice spoke to her.

"I mean… do you think they care about me?" Vanellope asked.

"I can only speak of what I feel, which is a need to be by your side for as long as you may have me. What are your feelings on the matter?" the voice asked back.

"My feelings?" Vanellope looked up at the ceiling and let out a sigh. "I just wish things were simpler, like when Ralph was here."

The voice remained silent. Vanellope, exhausted from her race, soon closed her eyes, unaware of the absence of weight on her chest.

* * *

An ominous dark cloud reared its ugly head as Luna and the others approach the mythical mountain. Luna gave an uneasy glance at the sky before looking to Sarah. The younger girl seemed incredibly focused on the task at hand. Luna wished she could be so resolute, so coolheaded about the situation, but in the end she supposed that was what made her Luna and Sarah, Sarah. She had learnt the hard way about imitating the behavior of others she had looked up to with Astra and Sora.

" **LEAVE THIS PLACE AT ONCE**!"

"What was that?" Luna asked, snapping her head to the right. For a split second, her vision had gone blank and letters had appeared in her mind, separate but when taken together was enough to send a chill down her spine.

"I felt it too! Talk about creepy," Aya muttered. "You think it's behind us coming here?"

"Hey! You're the one that brought us here in the first place! At least make up your mind!" Luna yelled.

"At least it looks like the mythical Cloud isn't so mythical if whoever this is wants us to turn back," Sarah said. "I say we promptly shut them up and keep going."

"We're right behind you!" Aya exclaimed with a thumbs up. Sarah veered the kart left into the path of the mountain trail and began navigating the twisty paths upwards.

As the three of them continued upwards, forms in the shape of ones and zeroes began to form before taking shape as gargoyle-like Wraith.

"Hey, that's cheating!" Aya yelled. Summoning her Keyblade, she held it out in a guard position and parried as the gargoyle flew in to attack her. Sarah drifted round the corner and took out one of the Gargoyles by throwing her Keyblade. Luna soon found her view obscured off Sarah's kart when a gargoyle suddenly landed on the hood of her kart, giving her a bit of a scare. She swerved left and right, trying to throw the Gargoyle off but with the narrow road she didn't have much to work with. Fortunately, Sarah looked behind her and slowed down before reversing into Luna's front, smashing the gargoyle in between the two karts.

"Thank you!" Luna leaned out of her seat and yelled. Sarah soon accelerated again, creating distance between them once more.

As they reached higher ground lightning suddenly struck, severing a chunk of rock from the rest of the mountain. Luna looked up, her mouth agape in horror as the boulder fell towards them.

She considered slowing down for a moment only to recoil from the thought. If the rock destroyed her path, it would leave Sarah as the only one left to brave the rest of the mountain and whatever lay beyond. Backing off seemed out of the question, but she was incredibly likely to get hit by the rock as well if she continued onward. Was it even possible to die in a video game world? Surely she could just respawn elsewhere… right?

"LOOK OUT!" Aya yelled. She accelerated forward and rammed into the back of Luna's kart before the rock could hit her. Luna's kart was given the burst of acceleration it needed to escape the treacherous hazard but Aya's kart was not so lucky.

"AYA!" Luna reached out behind her, though she knew it was ultimately a futile act. Aya's kart broke apart as the rock smashed into the hood of the kart and Aya flew forward and fell. What happened to her after that, Luna had no idea. She looked back quickly to Sarah. "Sarah!"

"I know what you want to say but we can't. We just have to keep going and hope she's alright!" Sarah yelled back at her.

"That's…" Impossible, Luna wanted to say. She couldn't concentrate knowing that a friend could be in danger, especially when they had put themselves in harm's way to save her. But she knew Sarah was right. It was because of that sacrifice that she could keep moving forward. She could only imagine Aya calling her an idiot if she backed out now.

As the two girls neared the mountain's crest, they soon came into contact with the first layer of dust particles that formed the clouds above. More and more Wraith began to pop up as they neared their goal too. Luna ducked as a Pterodactyl tried to attack her from above before looking in front of her to see a dense thick substance that resembled cotton candy ahead of Sarah's kart.

"We're going in?" Luna asked.

"We're going in." Sarah pushed down on the gas hard and headed straight into the cloud. Luna could feel her palms digging into the wheel as she egged the kart on. Before the pterodactyls could swoop in on her once more, Luna passed through the cloud and her vision went white.

When her vision cleared, she found herself drifting in endless dark water. For a good while, Luna thought about relaxing and letting the ocean carry her away. Her mouth parted and she found she could breathe. Her immersion broken, Luna suddenly found her body being pushed upwards by an invisible pressure. She soon broke the calm surface and gasped out of instinct.

She whipped around several times, trying to ascertain her surroundings. She was in a small dimly lit room with not much else but the small pool of water she was standing in. She reached down and stirred her fingers in the water before pulling them back up, watching as droplets dripped from her fingers.

"Quite a number of guests today, it would seem."

Momentarily stunned by the voice, Luna looked up quickly to see an old man with a hunched over back and cane.

"Who are you and where am I?" Luna asked, averting her eyes from the man to look around once more.

"You've come here and you don't even know? I am the Arbiter of the Cloud, therefore you must be in…?"

"The Cloud?" Luna asked. She stepped out of the pool and searched around the room before looking back at the arbiter. "I didn't expect it to be so… claustrophobic."

"Well, this is just one room. You should see the main room. I'm assuming you're with that other girl?" The arbiter asked.

"Sarah? Yes, where is she?" Luna asked. The arbiter glanced at the door and Luna walked over to it. She slowly wrapped her hands around the handle and readied herself for whatever was on the other side before opening it.

The room she had entered was like a warehouse, or perhaps even a library. Spherical glass orbs containing wisps of light floating about inside lined row among row of a vast array of shelves. Luna picked one of the orbs up and held it up at eye level to examine it closer. The wisp suddenly parted and slowed around until they formed what looked like a video of a first person shooting game in action.

"Don't break it."

"AH!" Luna screamed and threw the sphere into the air. Landing back in her palm, she bounced it around a bit before finally bringing it to her chest. She looked over to Sarah and glared. "Well maybe you shouldn't scare me like that then."

She set the sphere back on the shelf just as the Arbiter reached their side.

"This is really impressive. Like a library…" Luna complimented.

"I suppose you can say that, although it's probably more accurate it say it's one massive database for storing the progress of every individual and every game that has used this method of storage," the arbiter corrected.

"So these are all save files? That's pretty crazy…" Luna remarked.

"The wisps you see in those orbs are fished out from the pool you came from. I just didn't expect to find two particularly big fish today."

Luna chuckled. "Yeah, not exactly something that happens every day, I imagine."

"The young girl beside you told me why and how you came here. You're searching for The Fix-It Felix cloud data, correct?" the arbiter asked.

"Yes although I'm not sure about her being younger," Luna mumbled the last few words. "But you can get us in the game?"

"Unfortunately, I cannot grant your request."

"What?" Sarah asked.

"It's impossible the gauge the effect of having foreign elements entering worlds outside their own, especially when those elements happen to be inhabitants of the real world," the arbiter explained.

"We know about interfering with other worlds. We had a rule like that in our own world too and-"

"Had?" The arbiter raised a brow at Luna.

"Well I- we- may not have made things better but…" Luna trailed off for a moment. Things had been better, for a time. It wasn't like them directly interfering with other worlds had inadvertently messed things up. They had been doing the right things, playing the right melody. It was just that someone had come along and had plucked all the right strings.

The arbiter turned his back on them and continued speaking. "I still cannot risk that. My responsibility is to the players of the outside world first and foremost. I cannot risk breaking that trust."

Sarah shook her head and looked at Luna. "Well, so much for that. Now what are we going to do?"

* * *

Aya's eyes fluttered open, her head pounding and in a daze. Her eyes eventually settled on the ceiling of the room she was in and she let out a groan.

"My head hurts… where am I?"

She lifted her head off from the pillow and stared at the door in front of her. If she was being confined then she had certainly expected to be given something a lot colder and solitary. Then again in a world like this, it was hard to believe it was holding something as nefarious as a dark and cold dungeon.

Standing up, she walked over to the door all the while holding her throbbing temple with her right hand, and took hold of the doorknob with her other. After giving a few tugs, she resigned at the futility of the resisting doorknob and resorted to banging on the door.

"Is anyone there? Hello? Can I at least have some food while I'm waiting? Maybe order a pizza or something? Even pineapple will do. I'm that desperate," Aya muttered.

Then she heard a click from the other side of the door. Backing away, Aya waited with hitched breathing for the door to open. When it finally did only for Vanellope to come in, she didn't know why she even bothered in the first place.

"Oh, thank goodness. You had my heart racing for a moment. I thought I was kidnapped by some… psycho. Though I guess a psycho wouldn't have such a nice place as this," Aya said.

"Why thank you. And what's a pizza?" Vanellope asked.

"You don't-" Aya leaned in and whispered, "You're telling me you don't know what pizza is?"

"Do I look like I know what pizza is? That's why I asked, duh," Vanellope said.

"Well it's like… a sandwich but better, with sometimes just cheese but usually people add a lot of toppings to spice things up, like the pineapple thing I mentioned earlier. Do you… even know what a sandwich is?" Aya asked. She just remembered that where they were probably played heavily in Vanellope's lack of food knowledge.

Vanellope forced a laugh in response. "Aha, well A-doy! Of course I know what a sandwich is. Boy, you guys on the outside sure are weird though, making food out of sand."

"Actually, that's… nothing. Oh, I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Aya."

"Princess Vanellope, though of course you already knew that. I must be pretty popular out there, huh?"

Aya had no idea about that, but there was one thing she sought to question. "So how do you know I'm from the outside world anyway?"

"My friend told me when he brought you here," Vanellope said. "Apparently you were doing something you weren't supposed to, but who's keeping track of that, am I right? But what I want to know is how did you guys get here? This is insane! I never thought I'd get the chance to meet someone who's played my game. Well? Who's their favorite character out there?"

"This is really strange. I didn't think you'd be so self-aware about all this," Aya said. "Okay, I'll answer your question, to the best of my abilities anyway, if you agree to answer mine, deal?"

"Hmm… deal!" Vanellope exclaimed with a grin.

"Great, so I never really got a chance to play your game unfortunately. There's someone I know, she was one of the girls here with me, she plays your game a lot so she could probably tell you. I wanted to play it as well but for some reason the game was glitch on Sarah's game console. I guess there are probably records or something like that in the outside world too that could tell you about who the most used characters are. As for how we got here, it's kind of weird. Something really strange happened with the handheld my friend has and the next thing we know, we're here."

"Ooh, a mystery! Well, if you had to pick between Sugar Rush and the outside world, which would you pick?" Vanellope asked, kicking her feet about.

"At the moment? Ideally, this but…" Aya was afraid to say the next few words in fear of hurting Vanellope's feelings. She wanted to say that it would eventually catch up to her that none of this was real. Even putting that aside, everything was way too sugary and sweet. There was no way she wouldn't get bored of it eventually. "Okay, it's my turn. How does it feel knowing that you're a video game character and that your only purpose is to race over and over again. You can never do anything different?"

Vanellope raised a brow. "Why? Would you do something different when you're the best at what you do?"

Aya casually shrugged. "Well, I suppose it's a bit different for me. If I did everything the best, I'd be bored because there'd be no one to challenge me. Can't really go up when you've already hit the ceiling."

"Hmm—I guess that's true. Still, racing's in my blood. It's what makes me who I am."

"But you only feel that way because…" Aya couldn't finish her sentence.

"You don't have to stop. You mean because I was created to feel that way, right? Well, I feel like I have somewhere to belong. There are people who need me, and making them happy makes me happy. Say a kid has a bad day, and the first thing they do after they come home from school is turn on the game. If I can make them even the least bit happy, isn't that a good thing?"

"Then maybe it's not entirely pre-programmed then. If you can feel even the slightest bit of happiness, or sadness or whatever, then it must be something outside the code that's making you feel that way. That's not something someone can easily control," Aya said.

"Exactly! Besides, maybe you're a character too," Vanellope suggested.

Aya gave an amused look at her. "Sorry? What do you mean?"

"Well, maybe someone created you and gave you a role to play, just like me. But I would have the benefit of at least knowing that I was created," Vanellope said.

"Huh. Maybe…" Aya said. The clangs of metal and images of an arm clad in armor, her armor, reaching out to a blue heart-shaped moon in the sky flashed briefly in her mind. Aya pressed her hand deeper into her temple and closed her eyes, shaking off the thought before looking back to Vanellope.

"So where did your friends go anyway?" the young girl asked.

"They…" Aya paused, unsure of whether she should tell Vanellope the truth. Whoever Vanellope's friend was, it was clear that they hadn't wanted them to leave. She needed to do her own investigation here while she was able to. "Do you think I could meet your friend, Vanellope?"

"I don't know… he's kind of shy. He doesn't just talk to anyone," Vanellope told her.

"I'm a pretty approachable person though, don't you think. I'm sure I can make him laugh," Aya said.

Vanellope's face was screwed up for a moment in deliberation, only to subside and be replaced by a smile. "You're right. Having more friends can't be a bad thing. Okay, let's go meet him then."

Aya stood up and dropped her hand, hoping the annoying headache would go away on its own quickly. "Yeah. Let's."

* * *

"Please, you have to give us access to the game. This is really important," Luna pleaded to the arbiter. She didn't want to say he was stubborn, for he was simply doing his job, but it was starting to annoy her.

"You'll find that I don't have to give you anything," replied the arbiter calmly. That was another annoying thing too. How she found herself having to raise her voice in insistency as opposed to his consistently calm and measured tone.

"This is taking too long," Sarah said. Her patience finally tested, she suddenly reached out and grabbed one of the orbs from the shelf next to her. "Tell us where the game is or I drop it."

The arbiter's complexion changed at the drop of a hat. "You mustn't! You wouldn't!"

"Why wouldn't I? Do remind me again?" Sarah asked.

"Surely you can understand the pain of losing something you hold dear? That orb records more than just player progression. So many experiences and emotions are also contained in that little thing. Could you really destroy something so beautiful when you've even experienced it yourself?"

Sarah seemed to struggle with smiling for a moment. "Well I didn't become a pirate by thinking about every person's feelings when taking their stuff."

"Come on, Sarah, you don't believe that," Luna interjected. "You're not that kind of person. The girl who gets excited and absorbed in her favorite characters' world, that's the kind of person you are. Even if your sister set you on that path, it's not one you have to choose. Hopefully Hattie finds her own passion outside of taking other people's things as well, but it's up to you and Vera to convince her. I believe in you."

A look of agitation marked Luna's victory. Sarah looked down at the orb before setting it back on the shelf. "B-believe in… I don't need your belief! Besides, I was only bluffing anyway."

The sight of the beet red girl made Luna giggle. "Aw, are you embarrassed. Come on, Sarah, you don't have to be that way in front of me."

Unperceived by Luna and Sarah, the Arbiter had let out a small smile before turning to leave. Noticing this, the two girls kept close behind him. Row after row of shelves they ventured until they reached what looked to be a few rows from the end of the room. Turning right, the Arbiter reached out for a particular orb on the row second from the bottom and held it out to them.

"Wait… but why?" Luna asked.

"I think you mean well. All you need do is prove that my judgement is correct."

Luna exchanged smiles with Sarah before taking the sphere into her hands. "Thank you. We will, I promise."

He flashed a benevolent smile at her and carried the sphere back to the other room with the pool. Dropping the sphere into the dark water, there was a slight delay before a white light started to resonate like ripples across the water.

"Here you are. It's your favorite mode of transportation," the Arbiter joked.

"You talk way too much for being lines of code," Sarah said, throwing him an annoyed look. She wasted no time in jumping right into the pool. Luna could only offer him a silly smile to counter Sarah's before jumping in after her.

This time her destination was much clearer. As she travelled down the current's flow, she saw things for what they really were—data, and only something that could overwhelm her if she let it.

Once again, she felt the similar sensation of an invisible forcing pushing her upwards. What she didn't expect was to end up falling out of the sky. Her screaming was cut off as she fell into a bush.

Luna groaned and stumbled out from the bush, brushing herself off as she looked up at a large apartment building in front of her. If this was the game, she couldn't have been in any more different an environment than Sugar Rush.

"You look like you came out of a bird's nest."

Luna turned around to see a smug smile before she actually saw Sarah. She ran her palm lightly over her hair to feel several pieces sticking out.

"And now I wonder why I bothered cutting my hair," Luna said as she attempted to straighten it out. "How did you get through unscathed?"

"I used magic?" Sarah replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Ah. That's a thing, isn't it?" Luna let out an awkward laugh. Dropping her hands to her side she looked back to the building. "You played this game before?"

"No, but if I had to guess, it's a game where you have to climb to the top of building while avoiding various obstacles. I've seen variations of it before," Sarah said.

"Oh, the kind where random stuff gets thrown your way that make no sense, right? I think my friend and I played a game like that once in the arcade back in Alexander. Let's just say that after that I'll never look at pigeons the same way again. Anyways, let's see who's at home," Luna said.

The door soon opened after a quick knock to see a short man with a thick moustache.

"Hi, this is the Nicelander residence, how can I… help… you?" the man seemed at a loss for words as he looked up at the taller figures.

"Hi there, we're looking for someone called Ralph. Have you seen him around?" Luna asked.

"U-uh yes, right this way," he said, backing up to allow them into the building. Inside, they found what looked to be several doors on the landing possibly containing other residents, with stairs going farther up.

"Gene? Is everything alright?" asked a plump woman wearing a pearl necklace and a purple dress as she popped out from her room. She looked up at Luna and Sarah and gasped. "Oh, you never told me we'd be having guests. They're huge! The name's Mary, dears. I would have invited you in for a slice of cake but I don't think I made anywhere near enough to satisfy your appetites."

"Oh, no need to worry, ma'am. I've seen enough dessert for a lifetime," Luna replied.

"I'm taking them to Ralph and Felix. Maybe they're new characters added to freshen up the game? I've been hearing a lot of talk about other games getting expansions nowadays. Gee, what happened to the days when people were just satisfied with what they were given?" an irritated Gene grumbled as they passed by Mary.

Luna waved back to her on her way past before looking at Sarah. "I think I could get used to this. Being taller than everyone else, I mean."

"You are way too insecure," Sarah said.

"Hey, can you blame me when everyone goes out of their way to make it so apparent?" Luna asked.

"Then maybe you ought to find new friends," Sarah replied.

They soon reached the top floor and Gene knocked on the first door they arrived at. The sound of music could be heard blasting from within even before the door opened. When it did, a slender man wearing what looked to be a plumber's or mechanic's outfit greeted them with a smile that could win a million hearts.

"Oh, Gene! You want to come in and play too? We just got done with another game of Twister. Have to say I didn't expect Tamora to be so good at it. She's taking both me and Ralph to pound town. Gee, that sure is one dynamite gal I married, huh?"

"Well I'm glad you're having a good time, Felix. Unfortunately, I can't stay for long but I did want to drop these two off. They're here to see Ralph," Gene explained.

Felix looked up as if noticing them for the first time. "Ooh, he's gonna love this! Are they new characters?"

"Who knows? Maybe they came in from a different game? Either way, I'll leave them in your capable hands," Gene said. Luna thanked him and then followed Sarah into Felix's room, a room in which its state reflected the disposition of its owner. Luna could honestly not recall a room she had ever been in which had been as cleanly as this one.

In the middle of the room were two people of juxtaposed builds. The first was a woman with short blonde hair and was much taller than Felix, Gene or Mary. The other, hovering over her, was a hulking mass of a man with a stocky build and wild brown hair like a bird's nest. With his abnormally large hands and feet, he was finding it difficult to maneuver on the plastic mat of circles.

"Put 'er there! What are your names?" Felix asked, holding out his hand for them to shake.

"I'm Luna and this is Sarah," Luna introduced while shaking his hand.

"Well gee golly, those sure are pretty names. I'm Felix and over there's my lovely darling, Tamora. Can you believe the two of us come from two different games?"

"Well, she's not a hobbit like you so I kinda figured," Sarah said. Luna looked away for a moment and coughed. Sarah pointed at the man who looked like a mountain. "Is this Ralph?"

"Yeah… that's me…" Ralph groaned as he struggled to place his left foot on the yellow circle below him. "Hey, think you can open up your legs a bit, Tamora?"

"Hey there! Ralph, you better not try anything with her-"

"What? Oh, no-no-no-no-no, that's not what I meant. I just need to reach this circle," Ralph insisted quickly.

"Give it up, big boy. The odds are not in your favor," Sarah told him.

"Sarah!" Luna chided the small girl before looking apologetically at Ralph.

Ralph rolled to the side, careful not to squish Tamora. "No, no, she's right. Got to cut my losses sooner or later. Might as well be sooner."

Tamora smirked at him and sat up on the mat. "Hey, you're getting better at least. You stop now and-"

"I really will lose, yeah, yeah. So what's this all about? You guys from a different game?"

Luna shook her head. "Not exactly. It'll take a while to explain. Have time for a story?"

"They might, but I don't. Vanellope might be in danger," Sarah said.

Ralph's face dissolved into a look of solemnness. "You know Vanellope?"

Luna continued on to recount everything that had happened upon their arriving in Sugar Rush, about the race they had seen and how unhappy the racers were as well as theorizing the disruptive force she thought was behind the weird happenings.

Ralph eventually stood up. "I can't stay here. If she needs me then I'll be there."

"But how are you even gonna get to her, Ralph? You couldn't do it before," Felix chimed in.

"Couldn't do it before? What does that mean?" Luna asked.

"A while ago, the portal to Vanellope's game suddenly closed off. I came back every day hoping that something would change but it never did," Ralph said.

"That must have been hard on you… and her. And you left her thinking you would be back to see her again?" Luna asked. Ralph nodded and Luna bit her lower lip. That wasn't good, especially if this other force had been manipulating things. The portal closing, Vanellope winning the races way too easily, Sarah's game glitching out… it was all connected and sitting in the middle of it all was a mercurial piece of Kingdom Hearts.

"Well we can still get back through The Cloud, assuming that old man didn't lock us out anyway," Sarah said, showing them the sphere. She placed it down on the table that had clearly been moved to the opposite wall for the purposes of their party games and looked back them. "I think we should just be able to use the Keyblade to go back in."

"A Keyblade? I know you say you're from the real world but that definitely sounds like something out of a video game. But if this heart of yours is putting friends of mine's in danger, then I can't just stand by and do nothing. Consider me locked, loaded and ready to engage," encouraged Tamora. Her demeanor was akin to something of a hardened soldier, and although that intimidated Luna, she imagined that if she had been able to fall in love with a guy who seemed completely out of her league, there was probably a softer side to her.

"We're with you all the way, Ralph. As long as you don't expect me to do any fighting, of course. That's not my thing," Felix said, before drawing his hammer out from his belt. "I do have this though. Just in case something needs a fixin'."

"A hammer… well, I'm convinced. Since that's settled…" Sarah summoned her Keyblade and aimed it at the sphere, opening up a portal right next to the table.

"Oh Mylanta! That's pretty swell," Felix remarked.

"Hold on, kid! I didn't forget you," Ralph said, running straight through without a moment's hesitation.

* * *

The glowing pink chest on the dressing table caught Aya's gaze the moment she entered the room. Even unexposed, she felt like a cat curled up on a rug by a warm fire. Because of this, she had already started walking to the table by the time Vanellope had even told her where her friend was.

Aya pointed at the chest and raised a brow questioningly at Vanellope. "Can I open it?"

"Maybe I should, just in case. He can be pretty shy," Vanellope offered. She walked over to the table and picked up the gold skeleton key lying next to the chest. One quick click and the chest was ready to be opened. Vanellope opened up the chest and looked back at Aya. "Be careful with it. He's like my baby."

"Er, how old are you again?" Aya asked, half meant in jest although she couldn't deny that she was curious as to whether she had been programmed with a real age in mind. Regardless of the answer, Aya walked over to the chest and peered inside.

Her mind was in a chaotic state, with two opposing emotions waging war. On one hand, something was telling her to look away now, to do everything possible to avoid this before it was too late, because once she looked there would be no going back. The other feeling relied on a sense of nostalgia driven by curiosity. That light… that warmth… she had seen it before, but of course in much bigger quantity.

Of course it was the feeling of curiosity that won her over. Having seen Kingdom Hearts once before, it was hard to look away from its splendor, even if what she was looking at was just a slither of it.

For a few seconds, staring at the heart had not felt like such a horrible idea as her mind had led her to believe. It seemed peaceful, like it could naturally have been a part of a princess' room. As she started to let her guard down near it, like a snake it suddenly lashed out and sunk its teeth right into her heart.

 **Flashback**

 _Aya glanced upwards as a massive piece of rock broke off from the mountain's side. Her eyes focused in on the man who had stabbed his Keyblade into that same piece of rock and was holding on for dear life even as he fell. Before the rock made contact with the ground, Aya looked away, tears forming in her eyes._

 _She couldn't do this. She was too scared. She wasn't like them._

 _She just wanted someone to notice that. Was that too hard for them? Was it really too difficult to be noticed as weak?_

 _Slowing down her breathing, Aya looked up at the blue heart in the sky before making her choice. Keeping low to the ground, she began crawling under all the noise, all the violence and hostility permeated all by the smell of death and dirt that hung in the air. She wasn't going to end up charred remains amongst a pile of ash._

 _She had only reached a few feet away from where she had once been when someone suddenly landed in front of her. Closer inspection told her it was pointless asking if they were okay. In fact, the girl's lifeless eyes only encouraged Aya to let her fear take over her actions. Throwing all notions of rational thought out of the window, Aya was up and running as fast as her legs could carry her._

 _"AAAAH!"_

 _Aya wasn't sure what had happened, but one moment she had felt a searing sharp pain in her thigh and the next she was down for the count. Her vision marred by hot tears, she grasped at her leg in an attempt to stop the pain. She stopped however when she noticed someone approaching her, his mouth contorted in a way that made it seem like he was half laughing and half crying._

 _"Isn't it crazy what they're making us do? This was never going to end well for any of us," he said, raising his Keyblade at her._

 **End Flashback**

"Aya, are you okay?" Vanellope asked in concern. Aya, who had just gotten through an already annoying headache, had found herself soon exposed to another. She looked down at the chest again, only this time in contempt. She dropped the chest and backed away.

"That was me? Did I really…" A terrible chill swept throughout her body. She looked up in time to see Vanellope about to pick up the chest. "Wait… you can't touch that thing!"

Vanellope tilted her head to the side. "Hm? Why not?"

Aya summoned her Keyblade and walked over towards her, although her eyes were pinned on the chest. Vanellope frowned and quickly scooped up the chest, bringing it to her tiny self protectively.

"Vanellope-" Light spilled forth from the chest before Aya could say anything more. Seeing the ripple in time, she held her Keyblade up but was immediately overwhelmed by the ripple hitting her Keyblade. It didn't take much effort for it to smash through her defenses and throw her against the wall.

* * *

"Now there's a familiar place," Luna hailed in joy as she and the group reached the Nesquik sands. She looked up at the ominous dark cloud that surrounded Vanellope's castle. It had slowly moved its way out from the castle, dulling and making less vibrant what used to be a once beautiful land.

"And some familiar enemies to boot," Tamora aimed her rifle at the jawbreaker-themed cy-bugs that were scuttling towards them.

"What are those?" Luna asked, summoning her Keyblade.

"Cy-bugs. Ugly little critters who only exist to consume and multiply. Of course, there are larger nasties out there, but it seems like this virus of yours is really grasping for straws now by pulling these parasites out."

"They only exist to get curb stomped by us," Ralph corrected. He ran forward threw a punch at each of the bugs that came his way. Tamora aimed quickly and fired several well-aimed shot that hit the bugs' weak points, taking them out. Luna and Sarah worked quickly to cut through the Jawbreakers, avoiding their tough candy shells and going for their weak points after looking at Tamora for guidance.

They advanced forward as they cut through the small units of the Jawbreaker Cy-bugs. Ralph ran over to one of the candy canes and pulled it up from the ground, swinging it around to quickly get rid of the waves of bugs.

"They are really coming at us. Guess that means we just need to deal with the source of the issue," Luna said. Tamora smiled confidently at Luna's assessment and looked to the rest of the team.

"Couldn't have said it better myself. Even if they're dying, these things are doing their job, which is distracting us. Ignore the small ones and cut for the castle quickly."

As they reached the rim of the dark cloud above the castle, the environment around them started to glitch out. Luna stopped in her tracks and looked left and right before turning around to confirm that everyone else had felt the same. Instead, she observed as Tamora's rifle pixelated in her hands before disappearing completely.

"What just happened?" Felix asked.

Sarah looked behind them to see the Cy-bugs close on their tail. "I think our target's pulling its strings. Let's go."

With Luna and Sarah staying at the back to slow down the Cy-bugs, the group hurried to the front of the castle. Ralph pushed the guards aside and barged through the wooden doors with his shoulder, calling out Vanellope's name as he entered.

"Ralph, wait for us! Oh boy, that lad is gonna get his hiney knocked in, excuse my language, if he doesn't slow down," Felix said.

"You can slow down but we're not," Sarah dismissed his worries as she ran past him. Luna followed her up the flight of stairs and through a second set of double doors only to find that the scenery had completely changed.

"What is going on? Are we in some kind of dungeon? Oh dear!" Luna tried to force down her laughter as she looked upon the others, their appearances all changed to look more like 8-bit sprites. "You guys look hilarious! You're so 2D now!"

"Ooh, now that's kind of cool. You look just as good, Luna," Sarah praised, looking back and forth between Ralph and Luna.

"Huh? WHAT?!" Luna had been so taken aback by their forms that she hadn't even considered that her own had changed. She looked down as best she could at her hands and the corners of her mouth twisted into an embarrassed grimace.

"Guess it's more of that heart messing with us?" Ralph asked. Before anyone could answer, they heard a strange chomping sound coming from farther up the dimly lit dungeon. Eventually, it appeared from out of the darkness— a yellow ball, opening and closing its mouth again and again without end.

"Pac-Man?" Sarah named in awe.

"Yeah, I think there's our cue to run!" Luna grabbed her wrist and dragged her away along with the rest of them down the only other path left to them.

The group soon broke into a full paced run as the Pac-Man increasingly gained distance by the second. Left. Right. No matter which path they took at the various intersections provided to them, it really didn't seem to make a difference. Everywhere began to look the same to them, and it was hard not to feel that way with all the walls sharing the same brown and low-poly textures.

"I can't believe I'm being chased by Pac-Man! I can officially die happy now!" Sarah yelled as she was running.

"Well I'm glad you fulfilled your life dream but I still don't want to DIE HERE!" Luna yelled, immediately regretting slowing down to take a breather when it seemed that their enemy was getting even closer.

"Ralph, punch the walls! I've got an idea," Felix said. Ralph obeyed without hesitation, sticking his hand forward to tear into the dungeons walls as he ran. Felix grabbed his hammer and tapped on the debris that had fallen as a result, erecting a few walls quickly. As he joined back up with the group, Luna looked behind them to see no attempt by Pac-Man to break through the walls.

"I guess it can't get past walls?" Luna asked, stopping along with the others to look.

"Makes sense. Poor guy isn't programmed to go through walls," Sarah said. She looked down at her feet crestfallen. "That sucks."

"You're a weird kid. Anyway, let's get out of here before it gets a power up," Tamora said. The others silently agreed and continued on down the path they were on.

After a while longer in which they started to wonder if they were going in circles, Luna had an idea of her own. She summoned her Keyblade and kept it pointed in front of her. If there was anyone that could guide them through the layers of deception that they faced, it was Artemis.

Navigating a few more turns at intersections, the true path soon became clear to them. Luna lowered her Keyblade at the sight of the exit, a small white door that was slightly ajar. Ralph was there first, opening the door and pouring light into the dungeon. When the light cleared, Luna noticed two things. The first was that they had reverted back to their 3D model selves. The second was that they weren't in a dungeon anymore but a girl's bedroom, one in which Aya happened to be lying unconscious.

"Is she okay?" Sarah asked as Luna walked up to her. She knelt down and checked her pulse, giving a quick affirmation with a nod of her head to Sarah.

"Wake up sleepyhead. You're late for school," Luna said, lightly tapping Aya on the cheek.

"Just a few more minutes, Caleb… huh?" Aya's eyes opened to see Luna before smiling and closing them again. "Yep, definitely a dream."

"Okay, that's enough daydreaming, you romantic," Luna said, helping Aya back onto her feet.

Meanwhile, Ralph was slowly making his way over to the other person they had found in the room. Vanellope seemed almost frozen in time, her hands clutching the chest tightly but it seemed for sure that she had completely forgotten that she was holding it. Her eyes were instead on Ralph.

"You…" she finally managed to whisper bitterly.

"Well that's about what I expected to hear. Hey, kid. How's it hanging?" Ralph asked with an awkward wave.

"How's it hanging? Oh, I imagine you would know since you hung me out to dry. You abandoned me! I waited for you, because you told me you would always come back… and you didn't."

"It wasn't like that. Just let me explain-"

"So what was it? You found a better kid to replace me, huh? One that's better and smarter and cuddlier-"

"I'm telling you, that's not it!"

"Well it's fine! I don't need you either, Ralph. I don't need disappointment in my life!"

"Oh, just shut up and come hug me already," Ralph said.

A tear escaped Vanellope's right eye. Before anyone knew it, she had abandoned her chest and had leapt into Ralph's arms.

"I'm sorry I kept you waiting, kid," Ralph whispered.

"Took you long enough, big guy." Vanellope leaned out of the hug and looked Ralph over. "Where have you been?"

"I told you, it's not that I didn't want to come. I just couldn't. I couldn't reach your game through the Game Central Station," Ralph said.

"Huh? But what about the people outside? Th-they're still playing Sugar Rush, right?" Vanellope asked.

"That's the thing. I don't think you're part of the arcade anymore. It explains why I couldn't get to you. But these guys arrived here through your game so it can't be completely gone."

Sarah confirmed what he was saying with a smile. "I wouldn't worry too much. If anything, your game became more popular than the others, which is why they ported it to consoles. But I guess this is what happens when games become too popular…"

"Then… we won't be able to see each other again after this? But can't you just stay Ralph?" Vanellope asked.

"I wish but I can't do that. The Nicelanders need me and this game needs you," Ralph said.

"But I don't need you? A-and you don't need me? Is that what you're saying?" Vanellope asked. She shook her head. "I don't care about the game. I want to spend time with you."

"Vanellope…" a regretful Luna looked to Sarah for answers. "Isn't there anything we can do?"

"I mean, I could use the hacking feature on my Keyblade to create a copy of Vanellope. It would back up everything about her and I could then take it to Ralph's world where she could stay, but the original would have to stay where she is. She couldn't come," Sarah said.

"Well that's no good," Luna dismissed anxiously.

"Vanellope, let me guide you. This doesn't have to be the end."

Everyone's attention turned to the chest they had forgotten about. The heart had fallen out of the container and had exposed itself for all to see. Before Luna could move, Vanellope reacted quicker and snatched the heart up from the ground.

"Vanellope, what are you doing? Stop!" Ralph yelled. Vanellope gave him one last look before glitching out and disappearing from sight.

Luna summoned her Keyblade and pointed it towards the door. "Artemis, lead the way."

The journey to reach Vanellope was much easier the second time since it seemed the heart piece no longer held any desire to distort their path. They climbed the steps quickly until they reached the top of the tower, directly underneath the cloud.

Luna looked up at the cloud before frowning. "Sarah, is this-"

"Yep. It's the entrance to The Cloud. The heart must have manipulated the code and brought it closer to the castle." Sarah glared at the heart that was being held by Vanellope. "That's what you're planning on doing. You're going to escape, aren't you?"

"And it's all thanks to you two, of course. By entering through as humans, you tore open and entrance to many worlds. Now Vanellope can truly be happy… unless that isn't what you want," challenged the voice.

"Hey, no one told you to butt in so shut it. This is between us and Vanellope," Tamora yelled.

The voice seemed to take no noticed of the aggressive Tamora and instead addressed the person holding it. "It's time Vanellope."

As if by magic, a beam struck the ground from the cloud, producing an immaterial door in front of them.

"No! There has to be a way to stop her," Ralph said. Felix gazed skyward at the cloud before letting out a tiny gasp. He quickly aimed his hammer up and threw it at the cloud. Time seemed to crawl to a snail's pace for everyone there. Luna couldn't stand the nail-biting wait.

After what seemed like forever, she finally had her answer.

Vanellope at first appeared to run through the portal only to end up behind it, her back being exposed to them after the portal closed. The Cloud disappeared soon after with Vanellope's hopes fading visibly and fast as time went by.

"No… no-no-no-no-no! Why did you do that?" Vanellope cried.

"It really isn't the best way to go about this, kid. You're thinking too irrationally," Ralph said.

"BUT WHY?"

"BECAUSE IT'S NOT FAIR!" Ralph yelled at the top of his lungs. He stopped to catch his breath, surprised at even himself. He dared not look at the other faces watching him and instead kept his focused gaze on Vanellope. "Because at the end of the day, it's not about what you want or what I want. Because I know what it's like to be selfish and I know that without me, Felix and the Nicelanders don't exist. Without you, Sugar Rush doesn't exist. My game may not have become as popular as yours but that's exactly why I won't let you flush all that success down the drain. It would hurt me too much to see all that squandered."

"Ralph…WaaaAAAAH!" Vanellope dropped to her knees and began crying.

"Luna, the heart," Aya pointed out. Luna hesitantly lifted her Keyblade up and pointed it at the heart on Vanellope's lap. The heart was guided up and brought straight into Luna's hands.


	53. On The Shoulders Of Giants

**A/N: So I just came back from a week's trip to New York, and I really do think it was what I needed to get my creative juices flexing. Such a lovely place and met some great people there. Back to this, as you're going to see in this chapter, pieces are going to start moving into place and a lot of things are quickly coming to their conclusion, so let's get on with it, shall we?**

* * *

Chapter 52

On The Shoulders of Giants

"Luna, are you okay?"

Artemis whisked into existence at the first sign that something was wrong. Luna thought to control her breathing, her vision focusing in and out until finally they calmly settled on the ghost-like appearance of the goddess.

"I can handle it. I'm just not used to seeing… her."

"It's trying to make you let your guard down. Why not just pass it between you, Sarah and Aya every once in a while? It's not secret to the others you're not doing well, you know."

Luna grimaced. "It's fine, really. Once we're out of the virtual world I can just send it back to Kingdom Hearts anyway. I can wait."

Artemis seemed unconvinced but rolled her eyes and disappeared. "Your funeral. Just don't be so stubborn if you know it's too much for you to handle, okay?"

"I know. I know." Luna shivered at the thought of her dead parents standing behind her. They weren't real, of course. Just figments of her mind brought into existence by the heart she was holding. It laid all her desires bare and it had taken all of her strength not to act in a way that would worry the others.

"It doesn't do to ignore us forever, Luna. You have to look at us sometime," her mother said.

"You're not my parents," Luna reiterated through gritted teeth. From there on out, she did her best to ignore them and instead rejoined Aya and the others.

"Everything alright?" Aya enquired as she reached them. Luna forced a nod through and looked towards the sulking Vanellope being comforted by Ralph.

"Never when I was journeying did I think I would have to accept an ending like this. I've always thought that if I saw a problem, I could just go out and fix it. Now I'm being told there really is nothing I can do and that things have to be this way. It's so frustrating," Luna said.

"You remind me of myself, when I first joined Horus. I had a completely different perception going in than when I was actually there and saw reality for the first time. That I couldn't do all these things I still dreamed of because there were still rules I had to abide by," Aya replied.

A small smile appeared on Luna's face. "But I don't think it's completely out of my power. I've definitely been able to change lives with this power, even if I had to go against the rules to do it. That's why I don't think this is the end for them. I can't think of a way right now, but that doesn't mean their problem is going to last."

"I really do hope you're right, Luna. I really do," Aya said. The two watched in silence as Vanellope laughed at something Ralph said. With each passing moment spent between the two, they seemed to be getting better and better about worrying less about their future.

"You two worry too much," Sarah said, suddenly appearing next to Aya and Luna. Aya and Luna exchanged quick glances, wondering where she had even come from.

"Err, what exactly do you mean? Should we not worry?" Aya asked.

"It's simple, isn't it? When you're faced with a puzzle, you start from the outside and work your way in. Heh heh." Sarah snickered to herself all the while ignoring the looks of discomfort Luna and Aya were giving each other. Still, if she had some kind of plan then Luna wouldn't exactly discourage her from following through with it.

"Hey, you guys come over here!" Vanellope called to them. "You really went out of your way to make little old me happy?"

"Well, you seemed pretty happy already, but it was a happiness that was making your friends miserable," Luna said.

"My friends?" Vanellope asked. She turned to see Tamora and Felix coming towards them along with all the Sugar Rush racers.

"Brought them just as you asked, Ralph!" Felix said.

"You guys… what are you doing here?" Vanellope addressed them with a look of disinterest.

"Hey, I was the one who brought them here. You have a lot of apologizing to do. These guys all share something in common with you. You all love racing. Now why that can't be enough, I don't know, but I've been hearing you've been disregarding their feelings," Ralph scolded.

"What? I haven't been disregarding their feelings. They've just been getting butthurt over losing-"

"Vanellope, if you're not going to at least recognize that you haven't been winning legitimately, at least recognize that these guys still need you and that you need them," Ralph said.

"Alright, alright, Taffyta, I'm sorry… that you're such a sore loser." Vanellope pulled down her lower eyelid and stuck out her tongue.

"You think you can still win without your little game genie? You and your cockiness have got another thing coming!" Taffyta snapped.

"Look who's talking!"

As Vanellope and Taffyta literally butted heads with each other, Adorabeezle Winterpop shook her head and looked to the others.

"Girls will be girls. Wherever we go, drama's sure to find us."

"Explains my sisters. Doesn't explain me," Sarah said.

"Well, I think it's time we were off. How do we even get out of here?" Luna asked.

Sarah looked skyward, lost in thought. "Oh, the stars are out!"

"Well, that was random," Luna said. Looking up, she encountered what looked like a million twinkling jewels hanging in the sky. "Wow, it looks so real. I haven't seen any stars in the sky for so long…"

Felix followed their gaze, but when his eyes came down they only appeared confused. "You don't have stars in the real world? I couldn't imagine them not ever being there."

Luna responded with a sad smile. How she wished she could still say that.

* * *

 ** _Corona Castle, The Kingdom of Corona_**

"And you're sure about this?" Yen Sid ascertained while slowly stroking his beard in thought.

"Positive. David Xanatos is hiding in San Fransokyo," Namine answered without fault. She glanced over at Sora who had his own eyes on the ground before looking back to the sorcerer. "I was following up on it with Xion. Before she left Radiant Garden, Squall managed to sneak out some files from Xanatos' office. He didn't have time to check them out unfortunately. There was so little time and he was and still is being held under Horus' ever-watching gaze. That's why he left the files to the only other person who could get out in time."

"You." Yen Sid nodded to show that everything made sense to him so far. He looked to the only member of Moira's Crescent who was in the room, Rhea, who seemed to be processing the information in a likewise manner.

"There wasn't anything particularly incriminating in the files. Not unless you count a few of them specifically mentioning contracts with research labs in San Fransokyo. His assistant, Owen Burnett, also was supposed to check in periodically with this start-up venture in San Fransokyo, reporting back to Xanatos every now and then. The attack by Calypso, who was working with Xanatos as she confirmed herself to Sora, only makes these suspicions all the more likely."

"Too many enemies on his playground, huh? Think he's getting scared?" Hercules asked.

"He should be, because I'm coming for him. It's time for payback," Sora replied.

"Indeed. No one can escape their crimes forever. If we want to prove that then we must strike while the iron is hot," Yen Sid said.

"Agreed. You have our support, in whatever shape that may take. We're in this together," Rhea announced.

Yen Sid smiled at her before addressing the other Keyblade wielder in the room. "Sora, undoubtedly you may be a bit antsy upon hearing this recent news. I would only ask that you take a chance, even if you decide it only small, to rest before setting out once more. We have no idea what conniving plans Xanatos may be hiding behind and we cannot afford to lose one as instrumental as you."

"That's easy. Napping's my middle name," Sora replied with a grin.

"Well that's not good. I didn't know heroes were allowed to sleep on the job," Herc told him.

"Hey, don't hold that over my head! Yen Sid tells me to sleep and I'm gonna sleep, okay? No qualms here." Sora threw up his arms in lack of culpability before turning to leave the room.

Namine was about to follow when Yen Sid spoke again, asking her to wait for a bit. He no doubt wanted to know more about what Namine had been up to the past few months. While Sora wanted to know as well, the joy of finally locating Xanatos made it so that he was unable to linger on anything else for too long. It wasn't like he couldn't see her after this anyway.

Almost immediately upon leaving the room, he encountered Xion, Prince Adam and Belle.

"Were they giving you a lecture out here?" Sora asked.

"You'd think they were talking to their own daughter. I even apologized and they still won't let it go," Xion said with an amused look on her face.

"Only because we know you don't really mean it," Belle told her.

Xion shrugged. "Guilty as charged."

"Err, Xion probably just needed to figure things out on her own. We've all done some pretty wild things when we're angry with ourselves. I know I certainly have anyway," Sora said, placing a hand on Xion's shoulder.

"You're right. It's just that I know Belle… all of us really, were worried when you suddenly disappeared like that. But it seems like you're doing well for yourself," Adam said.

"But you might need a haircut. The shorter hair suited you," Belle added with a giggle.

"Ooooh no! You stay away from my hair. It suits the rebellious attitude I'm going for," Xion said.

"Xion, cut the edge for a moment. Your sword's more than capable of that," Sora replied. Xion seemed to appreciate the small joke because a small laugh escaped her parted lips before shortly sealing themselves.

"Maybe once this is over. But you know as well as I do that this is only gonna get worse before it gets better. Did you at least bring something for me back from your voyage? I imagine a place called Treasure Planet can't exactly be sparse of interesting shinies."

"Come on, Xion, you know me. Does this handsome mug look like it would be tempted by the greed of a thousand worlds? I'm not exactly a material person. But I did make a new friend out there," Sora said. As if on cue, Morph popped out of Sora's hood and began flying around and hitting Sora's head from all directions. "Hey, I said I was sorry for leaving you behind. I didn't think it'd take too long."

"Oh, guess who arrived a few hours after you left. They should be somewhere around town. Why don't you take Xion and go and meet up with them?" Belle suggested.

"I'm fine thanks. I'll just take a walk around the castle for a bit as I ruminate on things," Xion said.

"Wow, well okay Miss Antisocial," Sora said.

"Well hold on, Sora. You don't know where my ruminations will take me. I might even end up deciding to cut my hair."

Sora scoffed at this. "Yeah, like that will happen."

"Guilty as charged," Xion said with a smile before wandering off down the hallway.

Sora saw her off down the hall before taking his own leave with Morph. He had seen everyone else on his way here and with so many faces in the places, it was hard to believe he could even find hallways like this one that were incredibly empty. He had to wonder if it was even the slightest bit inconvenient for Rapunzel's parents to be hosting so many people.

After leaving through the castle's foyer, it took around five minutes for Sora to reach the town. One thing was definitely on his mind at the moment and that was getting something to eat. For how full he had been after eating Moira's Crescent's Hot Pot, he felt like he hadn't eaten a thing having spent so much energy in the battle against Leviathan.

"What do amorphous blobs eat, huh?" Sora asked, looking to his shoulder where Morph was perched. "Now that I think about it, do you even have a stomach?"

"Didn't realize you liked talking to yourself, Sora."

Sora away from his shoulder to see Ven and Terra smiling at him. He wanted to say he couldn't even recall the last time he had stood beside them, but the more he thought about it, the more he felt that it wasn't even too long ago that he had fought alongside them. He had always dismissed his parents when they had told him that his teenage years would fly by before he knew it, but only now was he starting to understand what they meant by it.

"Better than not being able to speak at all for about… over a decade, maybe?" Sora shot back with a sly grin. "Seriously though, I haven't seen you guys in a while. What were you up to?"

"Yen Sid asked us to investigate the Wraith. It hasn't exactly been an easy feat though. The moment you think you fully understand them, they surprise you with something else. There is one thing for certain though. They're said to be the guardians of the afterlife and they're drawn to the use of the Keyblade," Terra summarized.

"The second one I get but guardians of the dead? What's that mean?" Sora asked.

Ven shrugged. "Your guess is as good as ours, but it begs the question. What are guardians of the dead doing in the world of the living?"

"It must have something to do with the Keyblade War and all those Keyblade warriors appearing at the same time. That's the only thing I can think of," Terra replied. "And if that's true, getting rid of one problem may also get rid of the other."

"Where's Aqua, by the way?" Sora asked.

"She's at the tavern waiting for us."

"Poor Aqua though. I can't imagine the pain she's going through, losing the Keyblade she's used for so long like that," Ven said. At Sora's confused expression, Ven went on to explain how the masked boy named Nil had destroyed Aqua's Keyblade while she had been on her mission to capture Yzma and Drakken. She had now resulted to using her former master's Keyblade once again, if only temporarily until the fight was over. "You can tell she's been a bit out of it lately, but even then she's trying not to let that sour anything."

"For sure, and it wasn't easy getting Drakken and Yzma here either the way they run their mouths. I can't imagine how it hard it was for her having to deal with them after losing her Keyblade," Terra said.

"Wait, they're here?" Sora asked. Why was he starting to get the feeling of something unsettling in the pit of his stomach?

"Yeah, in the dungeons underneath the castle. We were questioning them about Xanatos' whereabouts but they're tough nuts to crack. They want immunity from whatever punishments the council are intending to give them. That's obviously something we can't afford to offer them though. Not even I'm willing to let them go scot-free just to find one man."

But Sora wasn't listening. He hadn't been for a while. For just a moment, a troubling thought entered his mind. Surely she wouldn't… but it wasn't like she couldn't. So if the chance presented itself then…

"Is there a problem with- Sora?"

"I'll be right back!" Leaving them behind with that vague promise, Sora turned quickly on his heels and sprinted back to the castle. On his shoulder, Morph who had once been in a relaxed state was now bouncing up and down uncomfortably. He hoped he wasn't too late, but he shouldn't have even had to hope that. He more so hoped that he was just plain wrong.

After reaching the castle entrance, he ran down a set of stairs to get to the basement level. The dread in his heart grew heavy like lead the instant he laid eyes on her. Adversely, seeing her with her sword hanging above Drakken's head solidified his determination all the more.

"Xion, no!" Sora threw himself forward before she could deliver the blow, pinning Xion against the wall of the jail cell.

"What are you doing? Let me go!" Xion protested with all her might although Sora leaning in with his weight seemed enough to prevent her from escaping.

"This isn't right! You can't just go around killing whoever you feel like," Sora said. He eased off her once he was sure she wouldn't resist anymore. Xion brushed at her arms before glaring at him.

"But when it comes to them, it's free reign, is that it? These people live off harming others-"

"How dare you compare me to some third-rate amateur? I'm an evil genius! I don't go out of my way to harm others. I'm in it for recognition." Drakken tried to stand up but Xion pointing her katana back at him sent him straight back to the ground.

"Xion, they'll pay for what they've done, but through the justice Neuge and Yen Sid want to uphold. Killing them doesn't accomplish anything," Sora tried to reason but Xion wasn't having any of it.

"You sure about that? Two people over millions and you'd rather protect the two? And what happens with Xanatos then? Got to uphold your 'justice' so what, you want to bring him in too? No, I won't let that happen."

"We'll get to Xanatos when we get to him," Sora said through gritted teeth.

"No, there are no double standards. You either stick with your justice or you stick to what you actually believe in because I can tell you're conflicted," Xion said. Her words were harsh both in tone and in the truth that Sora wasn't quite comfortable or willing to deal with yet, but she was right. She could see right through him, straight to the darkest part of his heart and all its desires.

Xion attached her katana back to her belt and looked back up at him. "Who are you going to be, Sora? You don't have to answer now but you better have the answer before you face Xanatos. If he sees any weakness on your behalf, he'll exploit it. That's just who he is."

With that, Xion took her leave, leaving Sora in a state of confusion. All he could really think about at the moment was that it was amazing how quickly someone could ruin a good mood.

A part of him, and one most selfish at that, had wished he had looked the other way. He hated the fact that he had suspected one of his own friends of being capable of doing something like this. Even if he had been right in the end, the worst part came from feeling like he had expected the worst of a friend.

* * *

"You're doing the thing again!"

Neuge stopped pacing and looked over to Eleftheria, offering her a smile before looking off somewhere in the distance. The ticking of a clock somewhere nearby served as an orderly structure to her rampant thoughts, although it only seemed a temporary remedy at best and not one that could quell her worries.

Eleftheria threw her a look of sympathy. "I know you say you're strictly her teacher, but I really do think there's something more there. You should tell Luna how you feel when she comes back."

Neuge drew her thumb back and forth across the top of her teeth and looked over to the table where Sarah's game console was.

Eleftheria continued, "I wish my mother was still here. There are so many things I would have liked to ask her. I'm sure it's the same for Luna too. While you probably can't be a replacement for her real mother, it's not like blood determines how much someone means to us."

Neuge let out a silent sigh and tuned back to Eleftheria. "That's enough. I don't need a psych evaluation of my life, thank you."

"Aw, come on. Be straight with me here. Tell me you don't imagine her as your daughter, even just the teeniest bit."

Neuge smirked. "No use telling her what she can already guess."

Eleftheria's smile slowly transitioned into a big grin. "Ahaaa! We've struck gold!"

"Copper, actually. Of course I've thought about giving her a life she—the both of us—never had because of circumstances beyond our control, but then I think about how much I've changed from my youthful optimistic self and whether what I am now is enough for her. I've been alone for a long time and I just can't imagine living with someone anymore. And Luna… will she really want to settle down? She's free as anyone can possibly be after all. I can't imagine I would give up what she has if I were her age."

"You need to be more confident in yourself. I mean, like I can say that, I live with my cat and shun any type of social interaction the moment my work colleagues offer we go out but I'm also younger than you so I still have time. Either way, you'll never know unless you ask her, right?"

Neuge folded her arms and sporadically drummed on her cold exposed flesh with her index and middle finger. Maybe there was still time yet to live a life she once thought lost to her. She just barely managed to unfold her arms when Hattie burst into the room, her face deeply sketched with a look of discomfort.

"You guys need to come see this!"

Neuge quickly drew away from the counter and followed Hattie out into the hallway. Even at night, Neuge had found at least some students wandering the halls in the past few days she had been there, so to find no one at all was incredibly surprising, and perhaps unsettling though she wasn't quite sure how to feel just yet.

And then just like that, she could hear voices as soon as she entered the main hall. A giant crowd seemed to swarm the open front doors, and Neuge, Hattie and Eleftheria had to stick close while also making an effort to push through the crowd of Keyblade wielders. Past the courtyard they went, Neuge's heart beating faster and faster as her fears of the worst outcome grew. What that even was, she didn't know, but something was definitely wrong.

Somehow, Neuge, Hattie and Eleftheria managed to regroup with Vera and Holly although there wasn't much point focusing on them when there was a floating castle hovering nearby.

"That's the castle from Radiant Garden… but how the he-"

Neuge froze, a something twisted resembling half horror and half amusement on her face. To her right, in the distance, marched a group of incredibly ugly and repulsive giants. On one's shoulder in particular, she caught sight of him. Irva Torvald stood tall about the rest.

Holly glanced sideways towards the other Lunarians. "Ready your Keyblades."

Screams repeating her orders were issued across the academy's entrance like waves, heading all the way to the very back. The giants slowed their approach and Irva held out his arm.

"I do not wish to harm you unless that is what you wish for. I merely come to make a proposal."

Holly stepped forward. "And you bring an entire army to do so? You have a funny way of asking for co-operation let alone respect."

"I felt a woman such as you would be more impressed if I came making most certain my intention. It also wasn't easy getting these giants on my side. One of them nearly tore my arm clean out of its socket." Irva jumped off the giant and looked up at him. "They're stupid and don't learn as easily. In fact, the only thing they'll submit to is brute force."

"Hey! I is not stupid, human! Take that back!" the giant cried out. A single glare from Irva was all it took to make the giant cower in fear.

"I'll commend you for being able to bully a couple of giants into joining your cause but it's as you say—they're stupid. I'm not sure what you were hoping to accomplish with so few, especially against Keyblade wielders," Holly said. Irva seemed to ignore her pointing out of this most obvious flaw and continued on with his point.

"My proposal then. I want your Lunarians and my Horus to join forces. I don't believe it's a closely guarded secret to anyone that neither of us want a second war. It does none of us any good and can only bring us more pain and suffering. We are more than those who came before. Your teacher, my father… they were fools who only acted for their self-gain. No, we can be better. We can do what they couldn't and shred the veil of illusion that tells us that we are sworn enemies and that's all we'll ever be."

Holly frowned, a look of skepticism abundant on her face. "What's your game? Why now of all times when you could have done this the moment you took over your father?"

"Because he has a fancy schmancy flying castle, of course! Men who have new toys just love to show them off," Hattie said.

Irva grinned and summoned his Keyblade, stabbing it into the ground. "If you so feel disinclined then you only have one question you need ask yourself. How did we end up here?"

Holly suddenly looked uncomfortable. "By here you mean…"

"This time period. Of course, the obvious answer is that a boy released us and brought us back but then we'd have to ask how such a thing was even possible in the first place. You see, I've been dreaming for a while now of our last battle-"

"No way… you too?"

"-and I couldn't understand what it could possibly have meant… until now. I went back to the scene of the crime and from there, I understood everything. Our existences, our purpose, all of it, amounts to nothing because in the end what we are is a fate worse than death. We're just tools. That's all we'll ever be in its eyes."

"It? What are you talking about?"

"Kingdom Hearts!" Irva yelled at the top of his lungs. He chuckled and pointed a finger at them all. "All of us are nothing but puppets brought back from the dead to do Kingdom Hearts' bidding. One last great war to seal the deal. When all is said and done and it has no use for us anymore, it will send us back to the graveyard from whence we came. Do you understand? None of us survived the war. Death is our past and it will be our future unless we act now."

There were mumblings among the crowd. Many vehemently denied Irva's claims while others were not so sure. In the center of it all, Neuge heard one thing mentioned again and again—they had all dreamed their deaths.

"Suppose… you were right. What do you propose we do, assuming I agree to us working together?" Holly worded carefully.

"We burn the source of our pain. Burn it straight to the ground until there is naught left of it than what is in our memories," Irva Torvald said. "In other words, we annihilate Kingdom Hearts."

"He's mad! He's insane!" yelled a boy from somewhere behind them.

"So the mask has slipped. And you say you want peace? You're rotten, just like your father," yelled a girl in the front row. There were murmurs of agreement among everyone.

"Well? You heard them. So now instead of capturing the light, you just want to outright destroy it? And you want us to help you do that? Well done, you've just painted yourself as a villain, Irva Torvald," Holly said.

"So you would choose extinction then? Does self-preservation mean nothing to you? Or shall we call it what it really is? Cowardice. You're afraid to cross the boundaries between known and unknown because this life is all you've ever been conditioned into believing. I know how hard it is for you to let go of that because it's how I was taught to think, to act. But no longer. I refuse to let our names be erased from history's pages. Tell me, am I wrong to want something so small as that? To take my own life into my own two hands?"

"And you would destroy the light to accomplish that?" Holly asked.

"What light? One that does nothing for us and sits idly by in the darkness as the world falls apart? Or the light within each of us, one that when put together can be great than each individual part? The realm of light doesn't need Kingdom Hearts to survive. The lights within each of us are all that we need to protect this world." Irva proceeded to walk across the field until he was standing right in front of Holly, his hand extended to her.

Holly avoided his gaze and looked down at the ground before turning to Neuge. "What do you think?"

"Me? I haven't the bloodiest of ideas. But I can tell you I'm not sure anything good can come from destroying Kingdom Hearts. It's a big risk."

Holly nodded, finally meeting Irva's gaze. "Thanks for the offer, but there has to be a better way. If we really are as dispensable as you say we are, then I'll seek to protect the most amount of people. Your path doesn't ensure that. You would risk damning this world to eternal darkness. That's something I cannot allow."

"Incredible. I offer you an olive branch and you'd snap it in half," Irva said.

"You say this but all I see are thorns. Forget snapping it in half, I wouldn't even touch it," Holly replied.

"I guess you don't consider your comrades lives important enough. Fair enough, maybe I came here expecting too much. It's fine however. For those who want to be saved, Horus will always be there for those who want it. For those who want to perish… hmph." With that, Irva turned his back and walked over to his Keyblade.

With his back exposed, Hattie decided to act. Summoning her Keyblade quickly, she aimed it at Irva's back and cast Thundaga. The bolt of lightning instead smacked against an invisible wall sending Irva into a fit of laughter.

"You really waste no time trying to kill me, and as soon as I turned my back, just like a coward would. Well, I guess I shouldn't waste any time either."

"Wait, Torvald, what are you planning to do?" Holly asked. Irva merely ignored her and took up his Keyblade, disappearing into a corridor of light.

For a moment, there was dead silence. It seemed no one knew what to make of the situation. Everyone that was, except for Hattie, who had a victorious smirk on her face.

"Yeah, run, why don't you? And he calls me a coward."

"You say that and yet…" Vera gasped before she could finish her sentence, much around the same time that Neuge did. A glowing white light pulsated from underneath the floating castle.

"Holly, this doesn't look good," Neuge noted the quiet leader.

"Huh? Oh…" Holly looked at Neuge strangely for a moment as if she wasn't registering what the older woman was saying. Then, seeming to fall out of her stupor, she quickly spun around. "EVERYONE, EVACUATE AT ONCE!"

Cries and panic filled the air. Perhaps under better circumstances, Holly would have been more prepared to act as the leader she was, but it was clear she didn't have much time on her hands. None of them did.

It was over before it could even begin. The ray of light shot out from the castle, aimed directly at the academy. Neuge felt herself flying as the explosion knocked her off her feet. Although she hit the ground painfully, her pain was the least of her concern at the moment. Cries and groans filled her ears, made indistinguishable by the heavy outpour of smoke that blackened the entire area and robbed her of the oxygen in her lungs. Neuge wiggled about like a worm as she tried to find the best way to shield herself from the smoke, dirt and flying pieces of debris.

After some time, the smoke briefly cleared and what she could make out of that was unlike anything she had ever seen before. Bodies lay strewn across the field, leading right into the courtyard like a breadcrumb trail, or what was left of the courtyard anyway. It was all one giant pile of rubble, with smoke covering most of the destruction. This extended to the academy itself, which was indistinguishable from its surroundings.

"H-HELP! PLEASE HELP ME!" Neuge looked in the direction of the source to find a girl sprawled on the floor with a bloodied ear amongst her peers. As she came closer, she realized that it was the girl who had spoken earlier.

"I'm coming! I'm coming," Neuge repeated over and over as she struggled to get up, struggled to make her way over to the girl. "It's okay, it's okay. It's going to be okay."

The girl coughed out blood and looked up at Neuge. "Is… my… is my brother… alright?"

"Your brother? I don't know who that is," Neuge replied. The girl's eyes soon closed. "Wait, no! Stay with me! Come on, don't give up on me! Damn it!"

Neuge leaned away from the girl and sat down. Her eyes scanned the surrounding area and her breath immediately stilled upon seeing the flying castle escaping into the smoke. It was only when it completely disappeared that she remembered something incredibly important.

"Luna! No-" Neuge clumsily stood up and turned around to look at the smothering pile of scattered flames and rubble. She collapsed to her knees and clenched her teeth. "Don't tell me I failed you too."

She could feel a stinging in her eyes, but before the first tears in many years could fall, she felt an icy cold hand on hers. She looked in front of her to see Eleftheria with a smile that seemed to take a lot of effort. In her other hand, she was holding Sarah's game console.

"Don't worry. You can thank me later."


	54. A Dish Best Served Cold

Chapter 53

A Dish Best Served Cold

"Hey, we're back!"

Luna threw her arms up in star formation as soon as her feet hit solid ground, only to retract them moments later out of embarrassment when she came across what was a clearly dour mood.

"Okay, who died?" Sarah asked, looking around the room they were in. "Wait a sec… this doesn't look anything like the academy. Where are we?"

One of the people in the room looked at them with an expression that showed he wasn't the slightest bit amused by their arrival before returning to comfort someone else who was resting on their lap.

Trailing behind Aya, the three slowly moved into the next room where they came across two familiar faces.

"Luna, you're alright! I'm so glad. I can't even begin to describe what we've been through since you three left." Neuge rushed over and embraced Luna, who was all the more eager to hug her back.

"What happened here?" Aya asked.

"Well, Sarah wasn't wrong, and it's not like you could have known. Horus came, and it looks like they brought a secret weapon along with them," Neuge went on to explain everything that happened and by the time she finished Luna had sincerely wished she hadn't.

"That's so repulsive. He says he wants to help you yet apparently he has no qualms in going ahead and killing you," Luna said.

"It's to be expected. He doesn't want a truce between them. More likely he was to absorb the Lunarians into Horus so that they can become more powerful. Using that weapon here and now was just his way of saying that he always gets what he wants," Neuge said.

"That won't win him any favors. That's something bullies do," Luna said. "And what about everyone else?"

"We're currently aiding Holly in finding any survivors. With how much ground there is to cover, it might even take days to figure out the fates of those missing," Neuge replied. A breath struggled to find its way out of Luna's mouth. Neuge watched her carefully before looking away. "In a few seconds, Horus managed to do what they couldn't when they had years. I'm not sure how the Lunarians can recover from this."

Aya's face darkened. "I don't even know what to say. I'm so angry right now."

Catching onto her words, a girl nearby stopped what she was doing and turned to face her. "I bet you don't know what to say. Funny how we were fine until a group of people showed up with one of them claiming to be a former member of Horus."

Luna stepped in front of Aya, blocking her off from the girl. "What are you getting at?"

"I just find it funny that you came here mouthing of about a traitor, or should I spell it out for you even further?"

"I didn't lie-" Aya quickly replied but a boy nearby countered her just as quickly.

"That remains to be seen. And who knows? Maybe the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Maybe you guys are with her."

"Oh, cut the bull! What point is there in suspecting each other at a time like this? Don't sour the mood by placing the blame right of the bat, especially when you're running high on emotions," Sarah defended so energetically that Luna had to question for a moment whether it was Sarah that was actually talking.

"Whatever. Doesn't change the fact that it only took you showing up for things to go south. Some of my friends are dead, and I won't let Irva Torvald or whoever's behind this get away with it." With that, the girl gave another look at the wounded person in front of her before getting up and shoving past Luna.

"Well that was rude. Don't worry about Aya. We've got your back," Sarah said with a lazy smile.

"But, I can't really fault her, or any of them. They just lost their friends so-"

"Sure, but that doesn't mean they have to take their anger out on the most convenient thing. It's not like their feelings are more important than yours," Luna said.

"Well said, though it would probably be best not to engage with everyone for the time being, what with emotions running high and all. You in particular, Aya," Neuge advised.

"Speaking of that traitor, what happened with them? Is the hunt still on?" Luna asked.

Neuge placed her thumb on her lower lip. "We can only hope they died along with the rubble, but if they knew the attack was coming then I doubt it and besides, that's a big assumption to make. For all we know, Holly and the rest of her group could still be in danger."

There was something about the whole thing with bugged Luna, so she decided to raise her point. "But aren't the Janus division of Horus completely separate from the main faction? I'm not sure an agent of Janus' would make contact with Irva Torvald."

"A double agent, maybe?" Aya suggested.

"Or the big twist—Janus and Torvald were working together all along and made some big drama about their divisions because… you know what? Forget it," Sarah retracted.

"Ugh, it's just all so confusing! Finding the guy for a start would be great," Luna mumbled. "Though our job was just made ten times harder, right?"

"Yeah… not if I have anything to say about that," Sarah said, pulling out her handheld.

"So this handheld of yours… it can pretty much do anything, can't it?" Luna said amusedly.

"No, only the things that you can't," Sarah replied.

"I… think we should do this somewhere else." Aya looked around the room, telling them a lot without having to say much of anything. Luna could feel the eyes of the frustrated and angry glaring at her even without having to look their way.

Luna looked at Sarah and Aya. "Well, we can save that problem for after. We help others first, not ourselves, so why don't we help with rescue process?"

* * *

 ** _Male Dormitories, Castle Corona_**

If Sora wanted to rest anytime soon, he was finding it enduringly difficult. As he lay on his pillow, his mind could only drift back to the argument he had with Xion only a few hours before. It was like looking at a completely different person. They looked the same and talked the same, but that was as far as the similarities went.

Whatever Janus had done, he certainly knew how to work his way into other people's minds. Riku was a bit more resilient in that sense so Sora was sure he could face it but Xion, ill prepared for the worst of which was to come her way, had been unable to fight back.

Sora grunted and sat up, looking around the room. He just had to ask her what she had been through. If there were any way he could somehow bring the old Xion back, even the slightest, then it was worth a try.

Careful not to wake anyone else, Sora's climbed out of bed and went to gather his socks before leaving. If he was correct, Xion wouldn't be with the other girls in their room. He hadn't forgotten the last time he had been put in charge of looking after her, shortly after they had rescued her from the asylum. At one point, Sora had been knocked out of his own sleep by the sound of her screams. If she was afraid of letting anyone else know what she was going through, she would be somewhere much more secluded from the rest of the castle.

After carefully observing the windows as he passed down each hallway, he caught sight of a silhouette by the bridge. His walk turning into a jog, he made his way down to the entrance and opened the double doors just enough for him to squeeze through.

"Shouldn't you be sleeping? I thought you had something important to do tomorrow," Xion said as he neared her.

"I could ask you the same thing. You are coming along, aren't you?"

Xion turned her head away to look at the lake. "You sure I won't mess things up? After everything you heard me say?"

"Not any more than I can. You were right, Xion. I don't know what will happen when I face off against Xanatos. I can't be what everyone wants me to be, I can only be myself. It scares me that I don't exactly know how I'll feel when I'm in the presence of that man, but it also scares me that what happened to Aqua's Keyblade might happen to mine. Luckily, she has a replacement but for me, I just have the one. I need someone who can have my back. Now I'm not asking you to go against what you believe in but I would at least like to understand where you're coming from, just so we're on the same wavelength."

Xion spun around to face him and leaned against the bridge. "About time you asked, though there's not too much to tell. After I left the castle, there was this white light that appeared in the forest, strangely enchanting and, when I walked into it, warm to the touch. It led me in front of the steps to my master's house."

"Your master… who is he?" Sora asked.

Xion bowed her head. "The original Silver Samurai."

 ** _Flashback_**

 _When Xion awoke, the first thing she noticed was a fly on the lightbulb above her. She watched for a while as the fly slowly moved about the bulb before taking off. As she sat up, she noticed another thing. She was naked… kind of. There was a thick cotton fabric wrapped around her waist and stopping just above her chest. She quickly pulled off the blanket covering her lower half and looked down, letting out a sigh of relief to find that her jeans were still there._

 _She laid her head back against the pillow and thought for a moment. How exactly had she ended up here? The last thing she remembered was emerging out of the light onto a beach at night. She had wandered for a while before the pain became too much to bear and… that was all she could recall._

" _I see you're awake at last."_

 _Xion grabbed her blanket, clutching it to her chest as she looked behind her. Half concealed by shadows, a man sat in a wooden chair, simply observing her. His hair was dark and slicked back and his features distinctly Japanese._

" _How long have you been there?" Xion asked._

" _Long enough. You've been out for almost two days now. Welcome back to the land of the living, Miss…?"_

" _Xion."_

 _The man gave her a brief smile. "You were very lucky, Xion. It was good that I came across you when I did, but as they say, everything happens for a reason. Death has no room in his kingdom for you, it would seem."_

" _Did you… were you the one who put these on me?" Xion pointed to the fabric wrapped around her body._

" _I was. You were wounded when I found you. I had to clean your wounds and of course that required ridding you of your garments. What you currently wear is called a sarashi. For women it is usually used for the purpose of altering one's figure to make them appear slimmer, but samurai have also used it as a protective garb. And before you ask, I did not touch your breasts."_

" _I wasn't going to ask," Xion said with gritted teeth. She couldn't deny that the thought had crossed her mind, but she certainly didn't want to linger on it for long, as in a few seconds type of long. "And who are you?"_

" _No one important. Just a relic of a bygone era that somehow hasn't withered to ashes like so many others."_

 _Xion tilted her head to the side as she tried to figure him out. Finally she shook her head and tried to get up._

" _Whatever. It doesn't matter. You wasted your time on me."_

" _Do you think so?" the man asked._

" _I know so. I'm too broken to be fixed. But thanks for trying, I guess. Where's my shirt?" Xion searched around the room for a moment only for them to land back on the old man. Her clothes were on the back of the chair he was sitting on. "Excuse me."_

 _She walked over to him and reached around for her clothes when his hand reached out and grabbed her wrist._

" _You aren't from around here, are you? Where did you come from?"_

 _Xion tried to wrestle her arm away only to find a tight grip constricting her. "None of your business."_

 _The man chuckled and let her go. "I could not begin to imagine what you've been through but I do know you will get nowhere in the state you're currently in. Rest. Recuperate. Meditate. It all starts there. And from then on you can find the purpose that will mend you whole again."_

 _Xion hesitated for a moment. "You said it yourself. I've rested for long enough. I shouldn't intrude any longer."_

" _Physically, yes. Not mentally, and I assure you, you aren't intruding," the man said._

 _Xion glanced at the man again for a brief moment before retrieving her shirt. "Fine, but that doesn't mean you can stare at me all day. Leave."_

 _Over the next day or so, Xion struggled to get any sleep. At one point she had even woken up to find a tear rolling down her cheek. She turned onto her back and stared at the ceiling again. She felt miserable. Every night she could feel Janus whispering in her ear, his breath hot and invasive. She remembered the feeling of taking of a particular weapon chosen on the day, being forced to hurt Riku again and again just to keep him alive._

" _Where will you be going?" the man asked the next day, watching as Xion throw on her jacket._

" _I don't know. I just know that there's no place for me here. It doesn't matter how much I rest. It won't change a thing," Xion said._

" _It is fear that keeps you from moving forward, but I also believe it is what brought you here. When I see someone in need of help, I do what I can to help them. If you will accept my help then I can teach you to leave those fears on the floor where you stand. Instead of burden you'll find purpose."_

" _Like a samurai? I remember you mentioning that before," Xion said. "Seriously, who are you?"_

 _The man looked at her with a twinkle in his eyes. "I suppose it's only fair. My name is Ken Harada. So, will you face your fears now or run away only for them to destroy you later?"_

" _I... don't want to be useless. I've been down that path before, where my existence was an inconvenience to others. In a way, what I felt then is very much what I'm feeling now. I'm not confident I can do this by myself, which is why if you're willing to offer help, I shouldn't shun you," Xion said. She descended to her knees with her hands placed out in front of her. "I feel like a little kid, so lost and afraid. I need your guidance. Please help me."_

" _It won't be easy, but we'll see what we can do," Ken said with a kind-natured smile. He reached out to put a hand on her hair but Xion flinched and instinctively recoiled. He froze and his smile faded before turning around. "We'll start as soon as you have something to eat."_

 _As it turned out, Xion's day couldn't have turned out any more unexpected. For the rest of the day, she found herself in a homeless shelter, talking and comforting those without a home._

" _Is this really necessary? I mean, I enjoyed it and I met some very nice people but I'm not sure I see the point," Xion said, arriving back at her new teacher's place later on in the evening._

" _You can take whatever you may from it, but I at least hope it can serve as a distraction. Helping others is always good way of putting your own problems at ease, though it cannot erase them completely. That will take time and dedication, more than anything else." Harada walked over to the table where two bowls of tempura and udon noodles awaited them. "Conservation of wildlife, helping around the community, passing on your own knowledge, being there for the poor and needy… other than the obvious effects of helping others, it also helps better one's self. As you mend the world around you, you might just find that some of the tools you used to do so can help mend you too."_

 _Xion joined him at the table and cupped her hands together. "I met someone today, who said he let off from his job when it was downsized. I think that's what they call it when businesses need to save on money. Anyway, he couldn't afford to support his family, and his wife left him because of it. Some people truly are horrible."_

" _Indeed, and maybe she could have resolved it in such a way that he would still be able to see his children, however, you've only heard his side of the story. Perhaps the man had resorted to drinking or gambling not too long after losing his job. Would you still sympathize with him then?" Ken questioned._

" _Err… good point, but what are you trying to say? That I shouldn't believe what people tell me, because now you've just got me paranoid."_

 _Harada chuckled. "That wasn't my intention. I just want you to consider that maybe there's more than one side to every story. A samurai should be impartial in all matters, even when they think they already know everything from a glance."_

" _There you go with the samurai stuff again. Is that what you are?" Xion asked._

 _Ken looked across the table to see that Xion had barely touched her food. He stood up from his chair and walked to the door in the back of the room leading to the inner garden. Nodding for her to come along, Xion followed him out into a beautiful garden full of Japanese flowers and to the end of the walkway where a door was accessible, albeit a door that Xion had never entered before._

 _Ken opened the door into the side room and stepped inside, closely followed by Xion. For a moment, Xion's world was blinded by darkness. She could hear footsteps nearby though she dare not move herself. When the lights were switched, Xion couldn't contain her surprise._

" _You're kidding me…" Xion whispered, taking in the fantastic piece of armor before her. The armor seemed clearly built to protect vital organs, but what really took her by surprise was how well-maintained it was for something she had assumed had not been used in a while. Every inch of the armor was meticulously crafted with iron or leather and the exterior coated in pure silver. In front of the armor lay a katana on a stand._

 _Xion took a few steps forward and let her hand hover over the length of the sword before looking at her teacher with newfound appreciation._

" _We are peacekeepers, meant to bring order and stability. As a warrior, I would strike in service of the one who hired me. Of course, it is dishonorable for samurai to ask for pay. We offer ourselves merely out of altruism. And yet, I can't tell you that I've stuck to my oath. A wealthy land owner once hired me to take care of a dispute between his son and a yakuza gang who he thought was extorting him for money. Turned out the son happened to be in said family and wanted out."_

" _But they didn't let him?" Xion asked._

 _Harada shook his head. "Once you're part of the family, the only way you're leaving is through death. It's a long term commitment. Needless to say, things got messy from there on. That was the extent of how far I could take my devotion to my duties without compromising my own values. Still, I told you before that everything happens for a reason. Am I wrong in saying that you've seen and participated in conflict before?"_

" _It's not unlike a samurai, I guess. We call them Keyblade wielders. They protect the realm of light, the world we live in, from the darkness which constantly threatens it. I was one of them at one point but… I guess I'm not now, ever since I found out that I couldn't use the Keyblade. I suppose that's fitting anyway for someone like me. Where I'm going, it couldn't follow."_

" _Where you're going?"_

 _Xion nodded and sniffled a bit. "I just want to lose myself. It's why I wasn't so reluctant when you mentioned volunteering. Because all I feel in my heart right now is hatred for the man who made my life a living hell. I've felt useless before, but no one has made me feel so useless like he has."_

" _Revenge, then-"_

" _Yeah, I know. You can't help me with that. That's why I told you I'd probably only be in your way," Xion said._

" _On the contrary, it would be pointless to convince you otherwise. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, I believe is the maxim. And if the anger is too great for you to throw away, then I can at least show you how to control it. I can teach you how to separate body from mind. If then should your mind conjure up a storm then at least your body will seek shelter from it."_

" _The path of a samurai… separating mind from body…" Xion couldn't deny the attractiveness of it all. Had she still been by herself and had come across someone offering this should would have dismissed it as bogus nonsense, but she had spent quite a bit of time with this man to the point where she believed there was some safety net in place should she fall, that he could keep her grounded and focused._

" _It won't be easy-"_

" _That goes without saying. Nothing worth it in life ever is, but if it can give me the one chance I need, and if I'm ready all I'll really need is one, then I have to take this chance. I'll stick with you, master."_

 ** _End Flashback_**

"After that, there was never a day that went by where I didn't take my training seriously. Whatever he gave me—no matter how mundane it was—served as just a little part of something much greater. I couldn't see the entire canvas just yet but I knew that it wasn't wasted on me."

"And that wasn't agonizing for you in any way? Did you feel frustrated like you were wasting time?" Sora asked.

"There are times, at the beginning, when I was a bit impatient, but it was as he said. Doing so many things helped to keep me distracted," Xion replied. "And soon after, you and I met up in the jungle. I went on some kind pilgrimage on suggestion of my teacher. It was so baffling how my view of the world had changed compared to when I was in the Organization. Back then, I'd do my mission, then call it day, maybe even hang out with Roxas and Axel at the clock tower eating Sea Salt Ice Cream. There really is a difference between looking and observing. I observed in these last few months, Sora. I saw the world in a way that I would never have thought to otherwise, and I owe it all to him."

"Wow, he sounds like a cool guy. I'd love to meet him," Sora said with a small smile.

There was a small pause where the only thing Sora could hear was Xion clearing her throat before replying. "Well, you can't now. He died not too long before you and I met back up in San Fransokyo."

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that. Was it natural causes or…?"

"He was murdered… by that masked soldier who's always with Xanatos."

 ** _Flashback_**

 _Xion hopped from one rock to another as she took a shortcut across the stream. It was almost second nature to her now. Her feet barely landed on the small before springing off again._

 _Landing on the grass, she ran up the steps of her teacher's residence and knocked on the door. She had expected some resistance, but when the door popped in at her first knock, she grew immediately nervous._

" _Master?" Xion pushed open the door and walked into the living room. As the door closed behind her, the room slowly transitioned into a state of darkness with the only other thing emanating light being the static from the CRT television in the corner of the room._

 _She quickened her pace and started down the hallway, heading the past the room she usually stayed in whenever she came to visit._

 _She soon came to the end of the hallway where she slid open the door without hesitation. Not a second passed and she already regretted even opening the door, although this wasn't some Schrödinger's Cat scenario where not observing the event would have somehow prevented it from happening._

 _The masked boy stood over her fallen master, short blades in both hands dripping with something wet._

" _You… BASTARD!" Xion screamed at the top of her lungs as she rushed towards him. The boy evaded each punch Xion threw at him and managed to grab her arm after she threw another punch. Xion tried to wrestle her arm away but Nil's grasp was too strong for her. Opting for something different, Xion leaned away slightly before shifting her entire weight, spinning and throwing him into the stack of books nearby._

 _Nil managed to steady his footing in time and swiped left and right with his dagger. Xion backed out of the way and grabbed the nearest thing she could find, which happened to be a wooden chair._

 _Xion's screams became animalistic as she swung wildly with the chair. Vases fell to the floor and broke in her pursuit, but she didn't care. She could only see what she hated at that very moment._

 _Eventually she managed to pin him in between the chair legs against the wall. Nil moved quickly and thrusted one of his daggers forward, cutting into the skin of Xion's hand. She screamed at the pain but gripped onto the chair even tighter than before, pulling it away from the wall only to smash it against Nil's armored head as hard as she could._

 _Slowly, very slowly, Nil turned his head back towards her. "I don't often think about laughing when a girl slams a chair in my face, but I have to admit, even if you can't tell, I'm just laughing on the inside, Xion."_

 _Xion hesitated, wondering how he knew her name. That single moment of hesitation alone was enough for Nil to reach out and push her. Xion stumbled backwards until she tripped over the Ken Harada's body and fell to the floor. Nil was quick to move in on her and pressed down on her throat with both hands…_

"We should stop this. I don't feel like talking about the rest."

"It's okay. I can pretty much get the gist from there." Sora rested his arms and chin against the railing and scowled. "In the end it always comes back to them, doesn't it? And Xanatos."

"My teacher wouldn't have wanted me to live with hatred in my heart. I know that. But I can't forget, I can't rest until I know for fact that Janus isn't breathing the same air as me. I'll only be free of this hatred on the day he dies," Xion said. She held her clenched fist close to her chest and looked at him with something quite like regret. "Listen, Sora, I've got your back anytime you need it, you know that. That said, I can't go with you this time."

Sora quickly turned her way, showcasing his frown. "Why not?"

"I think I might know where _he_ is. I've waited so long for this chance, and I'll be damned if I let this window of opportunity pass me by. I only came here to make sure you and Namine were reunited and I'd say I succeeded."

"Xion, you know you don't have to do this on your own," Sora said.

Xion smiled at him. It seemed a smile somewhat like the ones he had known her to give before and not one teeming with mystery.

"I won't be alone, and neither will you. You have so many people here who pretty much thank the stars every day that they ever met you. They'd fight for you. That's not something you should take for granted."

"I don't want them to fight for me. They need to fight for themselves," Sora said. "I'm really not worth that much."

"Yeah? Well I think you better check with them on that," Xion said. She drew her katana from her hilt and aimed it at a confused Sora. "And, you know, while I can't be there with you physically, I can at least be there in spirit, right? Wanna spar? Maybe you'll even learn something."

"Ooh, tempting but I doubt there's anything new that you could teach me," Sora said, flashing her a cocky grin. Despite his words, he summoned the Kingdom Key. "But I'll let you humor me for a while."

Xion smiled and placed her katana back in its scabbard. "I won't disappoint, but not here. The last thing we want is for you to end up in jail the day before you face the big baddie haunting your past. Shall we take it to the forest?"

 ** _The Day of the Assault…_**

Sora lined up next to Celes and breathed in the fresh clean air as he prepared himself mentally for the task to come. The night hadn't been easy on him. He had drifted in and out of sleep, waking all too frequently to worry about finally meeting Xanatos and wondering how Luna was doing.

Luna…

If he had it his way, he would have brought her along for she had as much a stake in the battle to come as he did. They had both reached out to Xanatos in their moments of darkness and he had offered what seemed to be sound advice, except that was only his way of manipulating them down the path he had set. Knowing that someone had taken advantage of his trust had hurt him, but a weaker person would have cracked completely.

Hoping that doing so would help him get to sleep more easily, he closed his eyes and thought of Luna and, more importantly, of the things they could do after all this was over. Thinking of the future was the one thing that brought hope to a tunnel to which he couldn't see an exit.

"You feeling okay?" Celes placed a shoulder on him to offer her support.

"Honestly? I just want this to be over. Then I can breathe a sigh of relief and close a pretty stressful chapter in my life."

Celes hummed and nodded. "I know how you feel. I was blackmailed by their members. This means a lot to me too, which is why I'm coming to fight. I owe it to King Cecil, Queen Rosa, and all my teammates who fought by our side in the Turm des Himmels."

"Thanks, Celes. And if all else fails then maybe you can at least opera sing him to death. That's a thing, right? Broken glasses, shattered windows and all?"

Celes chuckled. "I'll think about it, although I'm not so sure he's deserving."

"Sora!"

The brunette turned around to come face to face with Namine. It quickly came back to him how he had wanted to ask her in more detail about what had happened before their meeting up in San Fransokyo, but the whole thing with Xion had made him completely forget to bring it up. He didn't exactly have time for it now either, but he did want her to know one thing before he left.

"Miss me already?" Sora asked as she reached them. He then mentioned in a lower voice. "I met Yeul."

"What?" Namine seemed to have some difficulty processing what Sora had just told her.

"I know it sounds hard to believe but there might be a way to bring her back. When I get back, I'll bring you to her."

"Sora…" Namine let her head droop as she struggled to combat the surge of emotions she was feeling. Eventually she looked back up at him with a smile. "That's a promise then."

Sora nodded and looked across his shoulder as Rhea called out to him.

"Well, it's time. The others are going to stay a distance so as not to draw attention that we're there and we'll rendezvous with the Big Hero 6 once we get there. You two ready?" she asked him and Celes.

"Yeah. This ends now," Sora said. There were so many times where he had thought against his better judgment about giving up, and that he had even made it so far was a miracle in itself. But the baton was his to keep. There was no more time for regrets, no time for hesitation. There was only the end of a long nightmare in sight and the relief of being unburdened that came with it.


	55. A Destructive Force, Part 1

Chapter 54

A Destructive Force, Part 1

David Xanatos attached the cufflinks to his shirt and grabbed his jacket from the chair nearby. As he threw it over his shoulder, he turned to the large glass window in the apartment that overlooked the city. With its view of most of the town and even the San Fransokyo Bridge, the apartment was probably one of the most expensive in the city.

"Mr. Xanatos, preparations for Project Rebirth are fully in place. It seems like we were right on schedule too," Owen Burnett told him.

"And all the sweat pays off... the world will never be the same again, and I owe it all to those who played their respectful parts. This is history in the making," Xanatos said. He turned around, smiling at Owen. "You know, when I first met you, I could just tell that my luck was about to change. That you've stuck by me all these years, through the many trials and errors I've endured, is a testament to your loyalty."

"Because you weren't like other humans. Your devotion to your cause conflicted with, and I don't believe I'm wrong to say this, your stubbornness to do things your way. Had you accepted my offer then and there-"

"Well, that would be that. I'd already have what I've longed for. I've always believed that you should work for things you want in life though. A free pass in life is not that exciting. To that end, you were much more interesting a prize than the prize itself," Xanatos said.

"And I'd say the acquisition was well worth it too, considering the results," Burnett agreed.

"But it must have been somewhat inconvenient to you. You can be honest. I don't imagine tricksters much like having their freedom taken away from them."

Burnett let out a slight smirk. "It's the opposite actually. I've always considered it a chance to learn."

Xanatos looked at Owen with a sense of appreciation. "As have I, my friend. You know they'll come knocking on our door any day now. Say I granted your release now—what's the first thing you'd do?"

"Well, I imagine a nice long vacation's in order," Burnett began.

"As opposed to a bad one? Well, it's a start. It's not like you're confined to any one place after all," Xanatos said. "As for myself, I quite enjoyed seeing the Incan architecture of the Kuzconian Empire and their beliefs regarding death and the afterlife were quite fascinating. If I ever do die, you'll mummify me, won't you?"

"If that's how you wish to go out, Mr. Xanatos."

"Well, that or cremation. Ending up six feet under just doesn't appeal to me," Xanatos said. He slipped on his jacket and walked over to the bespectacled man. He held up his hand. "Well, it's time. No matter what happens, it was a pleasure meeting you, friend."

"The pleasure was all mine," Burnett said, meeting Xanatos' handshake with a firm grip.

* * *

 ** _New Kyushu District, San Fransokyo_**

Like a paper torn in the middle, the fabric of reality was disturbed from its peaceful state. Rhea followed by Sora and Celes stepped out of the portal to find themselves in a park. As the corridor of light closed behind them, it was replaced with the sound of barking. Sora looked right to see someone a man who had been out jogging with his jaw dropped and a dog who seemed to be cowering at the appearance of these strangers.

"Nice going. Well at least the park's not full. This could have been much worse," Sora said, watching as the man and his dog left quickly.

"We're in a park? Now I just feel plain embarrassed. Well, this is where Hiro and his friends said we should meet them, but I don't think they expected we'd come here through a portal," Rhea said.

"Well, I doubt anyone will believe him. I mean, it makes for a nice story when he's at the bar, but I don't think anyone will be taking it too seriously," Celes said.

"Hey, look lively!"

Hearing Wasabi's voice from afar, Sora looked away from Rhea to see him and Honey Lemon heading towards them.

"We'll be your faithful guides for today. We're gonna meet up with Hiro, Baymax, Go Go and Fred at the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology. That's the college where we all attend," Honey informed them.

"Yeah, I was talking to Hiro yesterday and he said he was only fourteen. He got into higher education at _fourteen_?" Celes asked.

"Yeah, that little man's a prodigy. He has the smarts of his big brother Tadashi, and he might not believe it yet but I think he has the potential to be even smarter," Wasabi said as he and Honey directed them to the park's entrance.

"Tadashi died doing what he loved, helping others. A fire broke out in the school and someone, a professor who meant a lot to Tadashi and Hiro was trapped… well, anyway, he was the best of us, and he died for it," Honey lamented.

"That must have hit Hiro hard. It's a strange feeling, knowing that you're willingly choosing to head into danger and not knowing if you'll come back and how that'll make someone feel. It's almost like you're accepting death while at the same time hoping you can escape it. I'm not quite sure how I would feel in that situation, but Hiro's brother was a brave person, of that there's no doubt," Rhea said.

Sora had to agree, though he remained silent. He had known the feeling of sacrificing himself for someone else, and much like Tadashi it probably hadn't been so hard a decision as Rhea might have thought. It had almost been like second nature to him actually. In that moment he had felt something akin to indescribable bliss having given someone he loved a chance to live on in exchange of himself. He had no reason at the time to believe he would have come back then, but when she had given him his second chance to live, he came to appreciate just how precious and fragile that life was.

"These buildings are so different from the ones in Corona and Alexander. I mean, I see some resemblance at least to a few Alexander's buildings but the aesthetic and style is for the most part pretty different." Celes turned her attention away from the street, compelled to move her eyes and head in accordance with the foreign style of buildings before them.

"Can you describe it to me? I don't usually get the chance to marvel at these things, for obvious reasons," Rhea asked.

"Well, a lot of the buildings seemed to be made of materials that aren't stone, so straw, wood… The roofs are curved quite uniquely and in a way that they extend over the building itself…" As Celes continued to describe as much as she could about what she was seeing, Rhea's appreciative smile spread like a contagion to Sora, who was happy that Rhea's blindness hadn't prevented her from seeing the world in her own way.

"It wasn't always like this. The design was primarily due to a large earthquake that hit the older city well over a century ago. At the time, immigrants from Tokyo used the wealth they accumulated to rebuild the city as we know it today. Aside from a mesh of traditional Eastern and Western cultures influencing the buildings, they were also built to be highly resistant to earthquakes. The buildings all have a unique feature where they tend to wobble from side to side like jelly," Honey explained ecstatically. She certainly seemed to be taking her self-proclaimed tour guide role seriously.

"That sounds pretty cool actually. I'd say I like to see it in action but that would involve an earthquake happening which probably isn't worth price for admission," Sora said. Honey agreed with a nod and chuckle.

"So, where would Xanatos most likely be? Did you figure anything out, Rhea?" Celes asked.

Rhea nodded. "I consulted with Namine and Master Yen Sid on the matter. When Namine found the files in Xanatos' office, a few of them mentioned deals with another company by the name of Krei Tech? Supposedly they're a manufacturer of robotic engineering."

"Krei Tech? As in CEO of Krei Tech Alastair Krei? Well isn't that a nice surprise," Wasabi said.

"You know him?"

"Kind of. Our first mission as the Big Hero 6 had something to do with him. He's not too bad of a dude but he's rich," Wasabi explained.

"He's rich? Is that a downside?" Sora asked.

"Because there are two kinds of rich. There's the humble charitable kind of rich, then there's _rich_." Wasabi rubbed his thumb and middle finger against each other. Sora's mouth formed in a perfect O shape after finally understanding what Wasabi meant.

"Well he did build a memorial dedicated to Tadashi after we saved him, so he can't be too bad a person. Just a bit… misguided," Honey said.

"If you say so. I just want answers and if he can give them to us, that'll make things a lot easier," Sora said.

The Institute of Technology was only a few blocks away from the park. As Sora stepped onto the campus, he slowly admired the grandeur and intimidation of all the building.

"You study here?" Sora asked dumbfounded.

"Yep, we're number one when it comes to keeping up to date with the latest technology. People from all over come here just for the recognition, not that we have big egos and think we're better than everyone else, of course," Honey said. "And the school is also partially funded by Krei, just so you know."

"It's clever. He puts money into the system, trains and bolsters students' talents, they come to work for him and who knows, they may even make the next best thing. That way, the money comes back plus a nice cherry on top," Rhea said.

"You make it sound devious. Isn't the money going back into the city anyway? If it helps people, I'm not so sure that's a bad thing," Sora said.

"It isn't, although you tend to grasp another side of the story when you review things from a different angle, which in this case is that Krei may not have offered to do something like that if there weren't any benefit for him."

Sora frowned. "Well that's… depressing, but I guess it's par for the course with people who didn't believe that it was good to try and change the world for the better until recently."

"While I can concede on that, I still don't think going on a crusade to make the world a better place is a good thing. People who have seen the world changed by their own hands tend to think they can go even further, often at the disregard of those being affected by that change."

"That's a bit of a generalization, isn't it? I'd say it depends on the person," Sora objected.

Rhea raised an eyebrow with intrigue. "So you think you can change the world in a way that can please everyone?"

"I think I can make it better. I can try anyway. Certainly can't be worse than what we have now," Sora replied. If a Keyblade War, Wraith and David Xanatos was the best the world could do then it certainly needed to change. There was a key difference however between how someone like Xehanort instrumented change and how he would. If, in his efforts, he fell wayward, then he had friends who could pick up the slack for him.

Not too long after they stepped onto campus, Hiro, Go Go and Fred finally emerged from the school with what Sora could only imagine were looks of relief on their faces.

"Let me guess. Professor Granville?" Wasabi asked.

"You didn't even have to guess," Hiro replied.

"Really? Again? Hiro, when are you going to start taking your assignments seriously?" Honey Lemon took on the role of a stern disapproving mother in that single moment.

"Hey, when you have a world to save, who has time for homework?" Hiro quickly dismissed the topic with a shrug.

"My man!" Wasabi met Hiro with a fist bump. Honey threw him a disapproving look and, making as if he hadn't noticed, cleared his throat and kept his eyes on Hiro. "Where's the big guy?"

"I needed to upgrade his firmware so I have him plugged in at the lab. Should be done soon," Hiro said. "So what happens now?"

In order to keep him, Go Go and Fred up to date, Rhea launched into a retelling of what they had learned from Honey and Wasabi about Alastair Krei and his connection to Xanatos.

When she finished, Fred, who had been clutching his head over the course of the explanation, finally brought them down and whistled.

"Dude… yes. YES! Now this is what I'm talking about! Conspiracies, dirty dealings in the shadows, and the only one who can stop them is a team of heroes willing to cast light on the shadows that no one but them can see. No more little league for us, we're heading to the major leagues now!"

"Ugh, why must you make a comic panel out of everything? This is real life, now get with the program," Go Go snapped at him. "We need to question Krei personally. It's just a pity that he's so hard to get to."

"Well… didn't you say you guys saved him at some point? Looks like you could use that to your favor," Sora said.

"Well, it could work, especially if it's Hiro, but I don't expect him to just run his mouth especially when it comes to company dealings," Honey said.

"Well whatever we can get is already better than what we currently have. Can you lead the way to Krei Tech?" Rhea asked.

"It'll be a bit of a walk but no one's complaining about some exercise, right?" Wasabi said.

"Yeah. For you. But when you have roller skates the only thing you need to worry about are the slowpokes you have to wait for," Go Go said.

"You skate?" Sora asked.

Go Go looked him up and down as if trying to assess something. "Do you?"

"On a skateboard, sure. Not too bad either if I say so myself," Sora remarked.

"Then, maybe after this is all over we can see you shred."

"Okay, enough flirting you two. Let's get down to business," Wasabi said, wrapping his arms around both of their necks and pulling them closer.

"We're not flirting!" Sora and Go Go yelled defensively.

"Woah, get too uptight there and I might really believe the both of you." Wasabi winked at them both before looking at Sora. "It's understandable. Go Go's cute but she can also be pretty-"

Go Go looked off in another direction, raised her foot and brought it down hard on Wasabi's, forcing him to let go and start jumping up and down, howling in pain.

"Pretty damn awesome I think you were about to say," Go Go said, feigning a sweet smile. "So, shall we get going?"

* * *

 ** _Ansem's Study, The Winged Fortress Horus_**

There was an uneasy air in the room, as if it had just been announced that treatment had failed and that a beloved had passed away. As Irva looked among his cohorts, he found that only some could look him in the eye at this moment. Others, when he shined his attention on them, looked anywhere but him.

This suited him fine. Those among him who had seen him as weaker than his father were now cowering in his wake.

"Irva Torvald, what have you done? What was that weapon?" One of the elder Keyblade wielders decided to speak out.

"Oh, but you wouldn't recognize it, Lord Theta, because you and your ilk never came close to achieving what I have," Irva said. He wasn't really indulging in the pride of the moment, merely landing what he felt was the long awaited killing blow. "That was the power of Kingdom Hearts. We did capture one of its heart pieces after all, but alas, it appears I forget to tell you. Must have slipped my mind."

"Don't mess with me!" the older man yelled out. "I didn't necessarily agree with your father that you were ready to take over, but at his behest, bless his heart, I gave you a chance and now you go behind our backs and-"

"Now that's strange. Go behind your backs… sounds familiar… no, I must just be imagining things. But I hope you don't take it too personally. You and your little band of elites have enough on your plate as it is. Rest assured though that I have everything under control," Irva said.

Theta let out a low growl through his gritted teeth before holding up his arms. Before his Keyblade could manifest however, Mari Seren's Keyblade stopped him in his tracks. June looked between the two of them and let out a little giggle.

"To be quite honest, I'm approaching my end's wit with you cackling cumbersome clowns. My father is dead and if you were hoping I'd be just the same or even somehow easier to control, you were mistaken. I could have gotten rid of you so many times throughout my tenure as leader of Horus. That would have been my father's way, disposing of his problems no matter how little of an inconvenience they were to him. What were they described as again? Accidents? Do you know why I haven't resorted to that? Because I do things my way and I won't be satisfied until I see you licking the dirt underneath my boots.

"The power of the light is in my hands and with it I'll unite the factions in a way that even the founders of the Keyblade never could. All this petty quarrelling will finally come to an end and the Keyblade War shall be but a distant memory lost to the wind."

By the time he had finished, Irva was almost standing. He was hunched over the table with a fire in his eyes the likes he doubted they had ever seen. Though he wasn't about to result to executing them just yet, he almost considered daring them to test him further.

"No more special privilege for you. Looks like you need to fall in line along with the rest of us normies," June said with an innocent smile.

Theta and the other four lords looked on with pallid faces. Irva sat back down and closed his eyes. "You're dismissed."

The seconds seemed to drag before he heard the sound of the door opening and several muffled footsteps. When the door closed, he opened his eyes again.

"Lord Irva. Is it true? What you found at the wastelands?" Seren asked. "Then we…"

"We're dead, or supposed to be. I kind of thought it was weird my memories just came to a full stop there, but knowing that we already died once… it kind of sends a chill down my spine," June said.

"How are the other wielders taking it?" Irva asked.

"I can only speak for my crew but shock and disbelief as you'd expect. But we aren't the Caladbolg division for nothing. They'll jump back. We have a purpose now. You talked about destroying Kingdom Hearts," Seren said.

"Well, I have no idea if it's a good idea or not," Irva admitted with a small smile. "To be perfectly honest, it certainly doesn't sound like the greatest of ideas, but we're on the verge of being erased from history. If the light has abandoned us, then we shall rely on our own strength. We'll make this world work without Kingdom Hearts. That I vow."

"You're working towards a world where we all have the right to exist. Compared to most of the other useless fools who still stick to their misguided ideals, you're the only one who deserves to be called a Lord," Seren said, tipping her hat.

"Well, I appreciate that but if all goes well then there need not be any lords. I will be the last. I'll do anything to achieve my goals, even if it means using the power of the light against itself. That's just who I am. And these nightmares of ours…" Irva clenched his fist tightly and looked over to the diagram of the door to darkness on one of the walls. "They will end."

* * *

 ** _Krei Tech, San Fransokyo_**

The interiors of buildings could be scary places that could transport one to whole other worlds, Sora found when he entered the Krei building through its revolving doors. The modern stylings with glimmers of eastern inspiration gave way to a futuristic clean white environment.

On his left was a ramp that extended upwards in a long continuous spiral around the edges of the building, ending just under a large chandelier and the ceiling skylight. From a certain angle, he could just about make out that the ramps led to different levels of floors, each with their own set of rooms.

"Ah, Hiro. I've been waiting for you."

Sora turned to the reception desk in the centre of the room. Above it was a holographic screen displaying ads for the latest products by the company. As Hiro and the others went over to address Krei, Sora and Celes and walked past the desk with their eyes still up at the screen. They found on the other side that regardless of whether they viewed it from front or back, the same thing could be seen on either side.

"Well that's a thing. I've never seen a floating display before," Celes said. "If you had told me that we had come this far in another city, I wouldn't have believed you."

"Yeah, kind of makes me wonder how Neuge and the others are going to connect all these places. Some of them are a lot more advanced than others," Sora said.

"Well, it hasn't stopped you, has it? You've brought people together, even when they come from places that couldn't be any different. If that can be said of a group of people, then entire cities are merely only a step up in that regard," Celes encouraged.

Sora smiled at this. "Only a step up? Not that it matters anyway. I welcome the challenge. I'm sure if she were here, Neuge would say a life without hardship is a life unearned."

"That's a maxim I can live by. My talents as an opera singer were mine of course, but I never truly felt like I earned my place in the spotlight, as Maria," Celes said.

"Because you were blackmailed," Sora said.

Celes nodded her head. "There could have been so many others in that role. Others who probably wanted it more than me. Who would have enjoyed it more than I did."

"Who can say? You're in the role, not them. If they haven't gotten over it by now then they're just letting life pass them by. Now that you're free of KRONOS' shackles, you have to prove that you truly deserve that role more than them. And with everything you've done so far, organizing your own resistance to fight KRONOS in Alexander… there's no way you don't deserve that role. In my eyes anyway."

Celes placed a hand on her chin as she look at him with a curious gaze. "You know, you're pretty mature for your age."

"Well, finally! Someone seems to think so," Sora exalted, causing her to chuckle. "No, it just comes with experience is all. I seem to be a shoulder to lean on for a lot of people's problems."

"Hm, I bet that's how you get all the ladies." Celes playfully nudged him on the arm.

"Well they aren't exactly coming for the muscles, are they?" Sora replied, eliciting a laugh from the blonde.

"Hey, come over here for a sec!" Fred called from behind them. Alastair Krei waited until Sora and Celes had joined them before speaking.

"Rhea told me you were being manipulated by David Xanatos. Is that true?"

"More than just me. He manipulated the denizens of an entire town. If you're working with him then you need to cut all ties with him immediately. It's too dangerous to be associated with him," Sora said.

"Sora's right. He also tried to extend his influence to my home, ousting the royal family who lived there. He's most likely using you too," Celes said.

Krei let out a deep sigh and scanned the entire group before responding. "That will be difficult. You see, we happened to draw up a few contracts involving him selling his weapons to me. After witnessing its might, the military believe that this latest weapon can serve them well on the battlefield. In essence, it's a game changer, shifting the focus from military personnel and infantrymen to automaton. Robots will become the future of warfare and in return, lives will be saved."

"Robots? What was the name of the robot?" Sora demanded.

"It's called it the Omnidroid although it comes in several types... is something wrong?" Krei asked upon seeing Sora shake his head.

"Okay, we don't have time for this. Where is Xanatos?" Sora asked.

"If it's really that important…"

"It is. Please," Rhea pleaded.

"Okay. He's-"

"Wait. Quiet!" Rhea interrupted him, sticking her hand out. Other than the sound of footsteps of the many employees walking by and the various conversations that Sora could hear around the room, he wasn't really sure what had made Rhea act the way she…

That was when looked over to a glass of water that had been sitting on the desk nearby the receptionist. Every other second or so, the stillness of the water's surface seemed to break, creating ripples that spread out and disappeared quickly.

Then, there was an uneasy nothingness as the ripples completely died out. Sora was only briefly able to turn to Rhea when it happened. As Rhea spun in order to face the wall, Sora saw a flash of light before he was thrown of his feet. Sliding across the floor, Sora kept his face close to the ground as possible as debris and smoke covered the area.

Eventually he looked up, his ears hot and throbbing. He gritted upon hearing a faint ringing in his ears and looked around, watching the ensuing chaos around him. People were pouring out of the building with looks of fear and panic on their disturbed faces. He was about to look to his left but upon the first sighting of a body on the ground he thought better of it.

"…ra…ora…Sora!"

His hearing slowly returning to normal, he was able to make out Hiro's voice. He looked up at the fourteen year old and grimaced.

"Where are the others?"

"Over there." Hiro pointed somewhere behind Sora. He lowered his hand and helped Sora up. Sora turned around and let out a sigh of relief they were all unharmed. More importantly, standing behind them was Baymax fully decked out in his armor.

"The big guy came just in time and shielded us from most of the rubble. He was all KA-POW! A-CHOW!" Fred exclaimed, throwing his fists about.

"Well I'm glad someone can stay positive in this situation," Wasabi said in annoyance. "What the heck was that anyway?"

Sora looked over to the wall Rhea had looked to before, finally taking note of the bodies lying on the floor. There were at least four, but there could have been more possibly lying somewhere underneath the rubble. He certainly hoped not, but his interest shifted to the metallic black sphere by the wall. It was inactive, but he had no doubt what the sphere belonged to.

"An Omnidroid? But how? How is it active? I don't understand," he heard Krei's perplexed voice from behind him.

"It appears someone doesn't want you divulging all their secrets," Rhea said.

"So they tried to assassinate him with a self-destructing robot?" Honey Lemon asked.

"I think they were hoping to take us out too," Celes said. Sora was about to turn away when from out of the smoke walked a demon, or the closest thing resembling it in Sora's mind.

"Nil!" Sora seethed.

The masked soldier brought his arm forward like an arc, with his dagger pointing towards Krei.

"You come later. For now, Krei comes with me," he said.

"Over my dead body," Sora said. He was about to run towards him when Rhea stuck out her arm and held him that position.

"Now isn't the time."

"But he killed Xion's-"

"I agree with Rhea. At the present time, there is significant calculated risk that he is goading you into attacking. I believe it should be our immediate priority to evacuate the premises and ensure Alastair Krei's safety," Baymax assessed.

"Still, we need to keep him occupied so that we can get away," Celes said.

"Which is why I'll keep him distracted. I won't let him slip by me," Sora told them as he summoned the Kingdom Key. "And don't think you can make me change my mind either."

"I didn't intend to. Your will is the flame that keeps you alive. Anyone who dare strips that from you is in for a rude awakening," Rhea said.

"My will is the flame that keeps me alive…" Sora muttered to himself. He looked back at her and smiled. "Thanks, Rhea. I'll be sure to remember that one."

Rhea smiled at this before looking at Krei. "Keep close to us."

He didn't need to be told twice, it seemed. He was all too ready to head out of the still perfectly maintained revolving doors. As they were about to leave, Hiro stopped and turned around to look at Sora.

"Baymax, can you help Sora out?" he asked.

Baymax nodded and skipped over to Sora. The brunette looked confused for a moment and looked over to Hiro to see him waving. Sora nodded back with a smile before focusing on Nil.

"I'm gonna pay you back for Colette, Xion and Aqua," Sora said.

"I can't say I intended to kill you yet," Nil said as the other dagger appeared in his second hand. "But when you're standing right here in front of me, how could I resist?"

* * *

 **A/N: Don't you hate in movies and shows when a character is about to say something really important only to get cut off by something. Yeah, it sucks, so I guess I'll do it too. Anyway, tune in next chapter when Sora and Baymax take on Nil and the war on the ground intensifies in trying to protect Krei.**


	56. A Destructive Force, Part 2

Chapter 55

A Destructive Force, Part 2

It was Nil who acted first, and hungrily at that. He swept in on Sora, his feet seeming to drift on air as he flew towards Sora. Sora held his Keyblade inwards and deflected the first attack. Suffering from the knockback, Baymax moved in for the punch, slamming into Nil's chest, throwing him into the wall.

Sora launched off the ground himself with his Keyblade held across the width of his body. He swung outwards at Nil, who ducked and slid underneath Sora's arm. With a dagger backhanded, he spun whilst aiming for Sora's neck. Sensing the danger, Sora ducked and backed away.

"What are you afraid of? Is that the best you can do?" Nil asked.

"Afraid? I'm not the one wearing a mask, am I?" Sora shot back.

Nil gave an exaggerated shrug. "Maybe I wanted to look cool while I killed your friends."

As Nil chuckled, Sora gritted his teeth. "Don't you dare laugh about that."

"I wonder who to start with. Your mentor… or your girlfriend."

Sora glared at him. It was at that moment that Sora felt Baymax's hands on his shoulder. He looked up to the robot and smiled.

"Thanks, but I'm fine. I won't let stuff like that get to me." Sora looked back at Nil. "A cheap trick by a cheap chump."

"You've changed. I guess Xanatos really has hardened your heart to emotional manipulation. And here I thought I knew you down to a tee."

"I wouldn't say Xanatos has done anything to my heart. More like I know bait when I see one," Sora said. "Now are you gonna bore me to death or are we gonna settle this?"

"I couldn't agree more," Nil said. He flew in once more and delivered swift and powerful blows which Sora found difficult to parry. Baymax moved in from the side for a swing but Nil raised his right foot off the ground, spun and deflected the fist away with a roundhouse kick to continue attacking Sora.

Nil soon backed away before leaping forward with both his arms up and his daggers pointed downward at Sora. Sora dematerialized his Keyblade and fell backward with his arms behind him. When his hands found the floor, he kicked upward and caught Nil's stomach with his feet, launching him away. Rather than landing on the ground, Nil recovered in the air and flung out his right hand, throwing his dagger. Before it could reach Sora however, it suddenly changed direction and glued itself to Baymax's armored glove.

"Ha! Gotta love magnets!" Sora exclaimed with a grin. As Nil lunged in for another attack, Sora stepped back and cast Magnet. Nil, whose dagger had been caught in the ball of energy, tried to wrestle his weapon and arm away from the orb but to no avail. Sora dashed behind Nil, jumped and swung diagonally clockwise, striking him in the back and sending him to the ground.

"What are you even working with Xanatos? What do you think that'll accomplish? Xanatos is only in it for Xanatos," Sora said.

"And I'm only in it for myself, so I guess our interests align. I couldn't care less what Xanatos is after. I've never much cared for anything since I died. All I've ever cared about, all I've ever obsessed over, is in front of me right now. Your death is the only thing that keeps me living," Nil said, slowly standing back up on his feet.

"W-what do you mean?" Sora stammered and backed away as he suddenly felt a vile malice trying to grasp and choke him. It was a hatred unlike any he had ever felt before and it was emanating from a single source.

"The world can burn for all I care. Heck, Xanatos' plan can fail and I still wouldn't give a damn. Burn it all to the ground. All I've been able to think about since I was brought back to life by Xanatos, is killing you. Only then will I be granted freedom from this perpetual nightmare that has been engraved inside me. Even looking at you, I can't stand the sight of you. You piss me off and knowing that I can't control that enrages me even more. It's a cycle. One that never ends unless I kill you. But no need to worry. Once I've regained my freedom, I'll kill Xanatos too. He's the one who bestowed me with this curse after all."

Nil summoned a sword with its blade split down the middle and raised his arm for an overhead strike. Sora blocked as Nil brought it down, but was unprepared for the amount of force behind the weapon. With the additional pressure witnessed from seeing Sora struggle, Nil managed to overpower and disarm Sora. Sora reached out again for his Keyblade only to have the sword held against his neck.

"I won't make the same mistake this time," Nil said. "You move. I cut."

"True, but then again I'm not the one you should be worrying about," Sora said with a grin. Nil seemed to snap out of his rage, realizing only mere moments before seeing him that Baymax was still around. Baymax flew straight at Nil, his fist connecting with Nil's helmet. Nil's head flew to the side at an odd angle before he was launched off his feet, his body spinning straight into the wall behind him.

Sora walked over to his Keyblade and picked it up before turning to look at Nil. His mask half cracked, Sora was able to get a good luck at the soldier's face. Even through all the scars running down his face, Sora could tell who he was.

"Roxas…" Sora whispered. He hadn't been entirely surprised. During their fight, he had felt something familiar beneath all that malice and a few choice words from Nil had more than intensified those suspicions. Still, to find someone who had once been part of him—no, a friend, who he had once thought dead was standing right here in front of him.

"What are you so surprised for? Didn't Xion tell you?" he spat. Every syllable was clearly pronounced and full of venom.

So that was why she had stopped her story half way. Sora had thought it fairly suspicious though he hadn't wanted to force her to confess everything for fear that whatever it was could be painful. Was this then her way of getting over that pain? By denying the very truth that was right in front of her?

"Roxas, I don't know what Xanatos did to you, but we're gonna fix that, okay? Everything will be alri-"

"DON'T SAY THAT!" Roxas yelled furiously. "Don't act like everything can go back to normal. Not everything can be fixed, Sora, and certainly not with you coming in to save the day with some heartfelt speech about friendship. If you truly want to help me then give your life to me, or take mine in your stead."

"I don't believe that. I don't think you'd abandon Xion and Lea like that. You may look different now, but true friends see you for what you really are. I won't kill you," Sora said.

"Then that's all that needs to be said, isn't it?" Roxas said. "The hammer that delivers the thunderous truth comes down and your heart so easily bends. You think you can fight a war? You're a liability, and liabilities should be eliminated!"

Roxas suddenly threw out five small knives that he had been holding close to his chest. Sora reacted quickly and knocked four of them away. The fifth however made its way through and sliced his cheek. Sora stepped back, placing a hand on his cheek and looked up over to Roxas only to find that he had disappeared.

Sora clenched his fist tightly. The sooner he dealt with Xanatos, the better. If doing so unclouded Roxas' judgement even a little, then he had even more of a reason now to finish this.

"Sora, do you require medical assistance? As a personal healthcare companion, my functions, outside of fighting, primarily exists to treat others. A suggestion would be to clean and dress the injury with a bandage as soon as possible to prevent scarring," Baymax offered his assistance.

"It's fine, but thanks, Baymax," Sora assured him. He lifted up his Keyblade above his head and cast cure, letting it dematerialize as he looked to the entrance. "Let's go meet up with the others, shall we?"

"Are you okay, Sora? Hiro has taught me the difference between a hurt of the physical nature and of the emotional. Yours appears to be the latter, am I correct?" Baymax asked.

"Hurt? I guess you could say that," Sora said.

"From analyzing your conversation, am I also correct in saying you were once friends with this… Roxas?" Baymax asked.

A grimace replaced Sora's blank stares. "You are. I just hope I still I am."

* * *

Probably for the rarest of occasions, Alistair Krei found himself marching to the tune of others and not his own. Looking behind him, he could see smoke pouring out from the first floor of his building. Even now, he was still unable to fully comprehend it. Not for the first time, an attempt had been made on his life.

"Do you think I'm just really lucky?" he asked the group as they were escorting him from the area.

"Man, I don't know what you are but I don't want to catch any of it!" Wasabi snapped. "Just how many enemies do you have anyway?"

"You'd be surprised. You don't get where I am without making a few enemies along the way," Krei said.

"You seem pretty proud of that," Celes said.

"Well it's not preferable to the best option but I'd take being hated over being ignored any day of the week," Krei said.

"Just not to the point where it would get you killed, I imagine," Go Go said with an annoyed look.

"Wait!" Rhea yelled, throwing her arms out in front of them. Not a moment later, a giant spherical black ball flew across the street on the intersection they were on, cutting them off from the opposite side of the road. Legs extended out of the Omnidroid's body and it skidded to a halt and crashed into a few cars along the road.

"There's another one!" Krei yelled atop the screaming, fleeing civilians.

"Do you even know what goes on inside your own company or do you just sit behind your desk playing with your money?" Wasabi cried.

"SWITCHING TO OFFENSIVE MODE!" The Omnidroid turned around to look at them before running launching several small missiles at them.

"OH CRAP, WE'RE DEAD!" Fred yelled as he and the others ducked low. All of them save for Rhea, who had her Keyblade out. She held the brightly glowing Keyblade up above her before swinging horizontally, unleashing a wave of energy that blew up the missiles mid-air.

Fred's head popped out of his arms and his mouth dropped. "Wooooaaaahhh…"

"Get Krei away from here. I'm counting on you guys," Rhea said.

"You're going to take that thing on by yourself? That's a type OMEGA Omnidroid, the best of its kind," Krei said. "It was built to withstand assault from even the toughest of piercing shells. It is the ultimate weapon."

"How can you tell it's OMEGA?" Rhea asked.

"The visor on its optic clusters have the shape of an omega symbol."

"Visual cues then?" Rhea looked over at the Omnidroid before looking back to Krei. "Good thing you told me."

"Honey and I can help. Hiro, you're useless without Baymax so you can help Krei," Go Go said.

"Woah, cutting it a little too deep, aren't you? Come on, I'm not entirely-" Hiro was about to say but upon seeing that Go Go clearly wasn't going to concede, he backed down and looked over to Krei.

"Don't worry Hiro, I doubt my sword will be of much use either. I'll be coming with you," Celes said.

"Hey, what about us?" Wasabi asked, pointing to him and Fred.

"Well, whoever's going and staying should make their minds up quickly before this Omnidroid makes it up for us," Rhea said. The Omnidroid's head retracted into its body and travelled towards them as a ball. Honey Lemon grabbed something from a green glob from her bag, rubbery in texture and elastic to the touch.

Making an overhead throw, the glob landed on the ground in front of the rolling Omnidroid. As it passed over, the glob stayed stuck to the ground while also glued to the moving Omnidroid. However, Honey's grin became a look of pure stupor when the glue snapped and the Omnidroid continued on its path undeterred.

"But… my adhesive…" Honey mumbled sadly.

"Honey, I know this might be hard to hear right now but GET OUT THE WAY!" Wasabi screamed, dragging her out of the way.

Once again when it seemed like all hope was lost, Rhea stood still and swung her Keyblade up, catching the Omnidroid just as it was about to reach her. Sparks flew as the Omnidroid somehow failed to get through Rhea's guard. Soon, the Omnidroid grinded to a halt with its tentacles coming springing back out of its body.

"Dude… she's a beast!" Fred exclaimed.

"Damn right I am," Rhea said. The Omnidroid lifted one of its arms and tried to bring it down on Rhea. Listening in closely with her ears, she swung her Keyblade at the right time to parry the arm, and then the same for the one which came after.

"Say, how are you supposed to fight without your outfits anyway?" Celes asked.

"Don't worry. I've always got that covered," Fred said. He pulled out a walkie-talkie and pressed the button. "Heathcliff, bring in the goods!"

A few seconds passed before they heard it, the sounds of a chopper slowly closing in on their location. Soon enough, the family chopper blocked out the sun above them and a large suitcase fell from the sky, first landing on the Omnidroid's head before falling to the side of it.

"He's not even kidding. This is like the only thing he's good for," Go Go remarked with a roll of her eyes.

"He's looking at the suitcase. We need to distract him so someone can get it," Honey said.

"I'm fast, I can do it, but that junk pile's guarding the damn thing," Go Go replied.

"Not a problem," Rhea said. She took a few steps forward to bait the Omnidroid into attacking her. When she heard its foot rise, she quickly rolled to the side to avoid the stomping attack. Honey threw another gel-like substance at the Omnidroid, freezing its leg in thick brambles of ice.

Giving the go-ahead to Go Go, the athlete took off in a full on sprint. The Omnidroid moved its other front arms to attack her but she bobbed and weaved from side to side. Without stopping she swept up the suitcase by its handle and ran back to the others. As she tried to circle around the robot, its arm moved in for the attack again. Unable to get out in time, she instead turned to face the Omnidroid and held the suitcase up in front of her. The arm smashed into the case, sending her flying through the air.

"I got you! I got you!" Wasabi yelled as he ran for her. As he reached out, he found his hands wrapped against something. Pulling it close to his chest, he looked down at Go Go who was sprawled out on the ground, and then to the suitcase he was holding. "Well, I got something."

"Argh, I'm gonna kill you!" Go Go growled.

"Well, at least we have the suits now," Honey tried to make light of the situation.

"Okay, let's go, Hiro." Celes nodded to the shortest of the group. The two of them and Krei rounded the corner to take an alternative route while the other heroes quickly suited up.

"We've got your back, Rhea. Let's finish this quickly," Honey Lemon said.

Rhea thanked them and looked back to the Omnidroid. The onslaught began. Wasabi's plasma blades managed to parry the Omnidroid's arm swipes and thrusts. Fred ran in from the side, producing flames out of his costume's mouth that heated up the arm. Honey produced another ice grenade from her chem-bag and lobbed it overhead, successfully freezing the heated arm. Go Go skated in and Wasabi grabbed her hands, throwing her into the air. With the gained altitude, she front flipped on her way back down and struck the icy arm, severing it from the rest of the body.

"Now that… is what I call teamwork," Wasabi said.

"If that was your attempt at a team bonding moment, know that I still haven't forgotten what happened earlier," Go Go said.

"Why do have to ruin everything? Why has she gotta ruin everythi- AAAAAH!" Wasabi let out a high-pitched scream as the separated arms flew through the air and attacked him. Wasabi swatted his right hand back and forth, countering the opening and closing claws with his blade. Eventually the arm fell to his side where Honey Lemon could trap it to the ground with hardening foam.

"Watch out!" Go Go skated forward and pulled Rhea to the side as lasers began to shoot up from in front of the Omnidroid and travel forward.

"It has lasers! I think it expects us to die," Fred said.

"Omega or not, this thing is still just a machine at the end of the day and it can't deviate from that. Try to keep to its side and whatever you do don't… stop… moving!" Rhea yelled as the Omnidroid galloped towards them. Losing a tentacle hadn't done much to hinder its movement. To the contrary, its movements felt more desperate.

"SWITCHING TO DEFENSIVE MODE! SWITCHING TO OFFENSIVE MODE! SWITCHING TO-"

The Omnidroid alternated between these two modes constantly as it took on the five warriors. His opponents found themselves knocked away or their attacks deflected by the defensive mode. When it switched back to offensive mode, its attacks were ruthless and left little in the way for windows of opportunity.

"Not gonna lie, I'd pick… that leviathan thing… any day of the… week over this," Wasabi commented in between heavy gasps.

"Yeah, I don't know how long we can keep this up. I'm starting to feel tired," Honey moaned.

"Come on, guys. We might not see the fruits of our labor now, but we never will see them if we don't plant them," Fred encouraged.

"Wow, Fred. That was the most inspiring thing you've said all week. How long until we wait to hear more of this sage's wise words?" Go Go asked.

"Well, I should be going back to that Chinese buffet next month…" Fred's face was screwed up in intense concentration after taking Go Go's faux admiration seriously. Naturally, this only resulted in Go Go rolling her eyes dramatically.

"TARGET OUTSIDE OF IMMEDIATE VICINITY. LOCATING TARGET." The Omnidroid's head turned a perfect one-eighty. Before long, it was off. Like a spider, it crawled on its three legs down the street, leaving Rhea and the others in a brief period of confusion.

Rhea soon caught on to what was happening. "It's going after Krei. We need to stop it now before it causes any more harm to the city and its people."

The chase was on. With her sight out of the question, Rhea used her sense of hearing as her guide to chase after the Omnidroid. The loud sound of heavy metal grinding into cement wasn't the only indication as for where to go. She also had its vibrations to aid her along the way.

" _Ciorsdan_ , spread your wings once more!" Rhea yelled as she turned her Keyblade sideways. Wings sprouted out from both ends of the Keyblade and soon she was rising through the air. She landed on one of the rooftops and felt around for the Omnidroid's footsteps before holding up her Keyblade. "Time to call in some additional help."

Not too far from where Rhea and the others were, Salome let out a satisfied, if not elongated sigh and set down her cup of shochu.

"I swear you're a complete lightweight, Salome. Every time you come here I fear that you'll pass out," the manager of the establishment said.

"Oh pleaaase, I can handle my liquor. You know, Hammy, I feel like we've really become the best of friends after that little under age incident the first time around. I mean, to accuse me of being thirteen? Really? I'm a twenty-five year old woman, damn it! I'm tired of everyone treating me like a kid! So really, this bar is the only place I can be treated like a proper adult," Salome managed to force out, finding some difficulty in putting her words in a proper sentence.

"Well, you're a bundle of laughs, Salome. Whether you mean to be or not…" Hamazaki replied.

"Hehe, I don't, I really don't," Salome giggled. "Another ple- Ooh!"

She dropped her hand and looked behind her to the entrance. She stood up and looked back at Hamazaki as she stretched.

"On second thought, that next drink might have to come another day. See you next time, Hammy!"

"Seriously, stop calling me that!" But Hamazaki's words fell on deaf ears. Salome was out the door and heading down the street before he could even bring up the fact that she hadn't paid him yet.

Salome burst out onto a street teeming with dense traffic, cars stuck in place and their impatient drivers pounding on their horns among distressed citizens running for their lives.

Hopping from car to car, Salome eventually reached the end of the road and proceeded through several buildings. A few minutes later, she had stopped in the middle of the road, staring at the incoming Omnidroid.

"Glad you could join the party!"

Salome felt Lysander's firm grip on her shoulder. His own Keyblade, aptly named 'Game Gear' for its retro appearance, rested by his side. Salome's head turned when she heard another sound to see Rhea recovering from her drop.

"Well, any chance that Xanatos doesn't know we're here has probably been shattered now so don't hold anything back."

"Ooh, I like it when you give me leeway to get nuts," Salome said.

"Earth to Salome, we're still in the middle of a city. The last thing we need is a stack of bills for property damage showing up on our table," Lysander replied, nevertheless with a smile.

"Well, they can't charge us if they don't know where we are," Salome said in a matter-of-factly tone.

"Guys, focus," Rhea said. The Omnidroid sprung forward on its three legs, forcing the three Moira's Crescent members to separate. Lysander transformed his Keyblade into a hammer and swung low, sweeping the closest leg off the ground and causing the Omnidroid to tip forwards.

Salome ran forwards and jumped into the air, pointing with her Keyblade and sending a barrage of small meteors down to batter the Omnidroid. She landed on her feet when something emerged from out under the ground. It was another arm—no, the fourth arm that had been attached to the Omnidroid, Rhea was sure of it. The arm came out from right under Salome's feet, flipping her through the air and right back to the ground like a pancake. As for the arm itself, the Omnidroid's front claw opened up and it grabbed the arm by its length as it was landing.

"Looks like he's armed and ready," Lysander said.

"Mom's spaghetti?" Rhea added.

"Huh?"

"Nothing. Dodge!" Rhea yelled, rolling out of the way as the Omnidroid slammed its extended arm down with a crunching slam. As it lifted its arm back up, Rhea looked to where it had been to see a small but incredibly dangerous crack. The Omnidroid continued its assault, launching missiles at them. Each one of them dodged the missiles in their own way. Rhea dodged towards the Omnidroid to reach the extended arm. As it swung down again, Rhea lifted up her Keyblade to guard the attack but its speed and power proved too much for her. The arm cut through the Keyblade's defences with ease and knocked Rhea to the ground.

"Rhea!" Lysander yelled. He sprinted towards her, holding his Keyblade up for the Omnidroid's arm to barely scrape across its length. He dodged to the left of the arm and shielded Rhea with his body, cast a small protective shield with his hand to parry the next attack.

Before the Omnidroid could come in for a third attack, its arm was knocked away by Salome's dropkick. She kicked up off from the ground and proceeded to throw a flurry of punches at the arm with her fiery fists.

"You… are… really… pissing… me… OFF!" Salome yelled as she ferociously beat back the arm.

"Just how much did she drink?" Lysander asked. In the rare instances of anger that Salome displayed, Rhea had only ever known them to be, at least partly, associated with drinking.

Rhea placed a hand on Lysander to assure him she was alright before sitting. Before she could stand, she heard a strange combination of sounds closing in on them.

"Who's there?"

"Guess who?" The sound of Sora's voice brought a smile to Rhea's lips.

"Everything go alright with the mystery man?" she asked in concern.

"Of sorts," Sora said, dodging the question. He had no doubt that Rhea could probably tell that something was wrong but now wasn't exactly the best time to question him and she knew it. Alongside him were Wasabi, Go Go, Honey Lemon, Fred and Baymax.

"There has to be a better way to take this thing on," Honey said. "Let's see, if Hiro were here he'd probably mention something about using the enemy's strength against them. But what can we do?"

"Well, we can drown it in the bay. Its weight wouldn't be able to keep it afloat," Lysander suggested.

"We're too far from it. There's no way it would take the bait," Wasabi replied.

"Hmm… wait! We don't need the water to weigh it down," Honey Lemon said, fishing for something out of her chem-bag. She soon pulled out a few grenades and looked to the others. "We need to weigh down its legs. Render it immobile."

"On it! Baymax, you're with me. You guys cover us," Sora said. He set off for a sprint directly at the Omnidroid, who turned its head and began firing bullets from the machine gun that appeared on the underside of the robot. Sora cast Reflect in front of him and continued through as the bullets smacked against the shield.

As he and Baymax reached under the robot, it raised its leg for a stomp. Wasabi swept in and parried the arm away with his plasma blades. With them vulnerable, Baymax jumped and delivered a quick punch that knocked the leg out of position.

Now vulnerable, Honey threw the grenade in her hand which exploded mid-air. A string of orange goo spread out and connected the leg with one of the cars nearby. Honey threw two more in quick succession, sticking two other cars to the leg.

Back under the Omnidroid, Sora was having a difficult time keeping his shield up against the bullets. Go Go skated in and shot her maglev discs at the machine gun, knocking it off target. It was the brief moment Sora needed to let down his shield and slice the machine gun off. As the Omnidroid tried to move out of the way, the cars it was connected to followed and rammed into it, causing it to topple. When it did, the arm that Salome had been targeting earlier finally dropped its weapon.

"Baymax, give it a taste of its own medicine!" Honey yelled.

"Affirmative!" Baymax picked up the arm and swung it as hard as possible, slamming it into the Omnidroid's head. He repeated the process a few times until the head was smashed up to the side of the main body, leaving its insides were exposed.

"My turn!" Fred ran forward and let forth a burst of flames aimed straight for the exposed hole. The flames rescinded as he backed away and Baymax used the arm as a battering ram, thrusting it straight through the hole to finish the Omnidroid.

For a while no one moved, not only because they were waiting to see if the Omnidroid would surprise them with another attack but also because they truly couldn't believe they had managed to take down something like that.

After a while it had become clear to them. The robot, supposedly the strongest class of its kind, was no more than a pile of junk in the road.

"Woo! We. Are. Awesome!" Fred exalted. "To the power of, err, five, six-"

"Don't hurt yourself, man. There's nine of us," Wasabi said.

"Props to, err, Honey Lemon, was it? For coming up with the plan on the fly. That was some mighty quick thinking there," Lysander said.

"Well, I wouldn't have been able to come up with it if you hadn't mentioned trying to use its weight against it," Honey replied, slightly bashful.

"You all did a great job. Thank you," Rhea said.

"Job's not finished yet. Let's meet up with Celes and Hiro," Sora said. As they began to walk back to the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology, Sora couldn't help but wonder about the world beyond what he witnessed. What had brought about the need to use something with such frightening capability as a military weapon? Who were they even warring with in the first place?

When he decided to pose this question to Rhea, she smiled. "What they fight for isn't for light or darkness. It's simply a decision taken by the few that results in the many being sacrificed, all for the greater good as they'd put it. And what is the greater good, you ask? That's the thing. I don't know. It changes from person to person, and when it does and that belief reigns supreme is when it also becomes the truth. That is the great darkness of our hearts. The belief that we are right and they are wrong. That's all it takes to set off the spark."

"And the cycle continues," Sora murmured to himself. He suddenly felt ashamed and lost. He had convinced himself that Xion was right. That he couldn't afford to look at his enemy as if they were human, but then what was he to do if that only fuelled hatred?

"You're in doubt," Rhea said. "I didn't need to listen to your heart to figure that out. Your silence says it all."

"What should I do? I know I shouldn't expect my enemies to suddenly come to a revelation about how all life is precious but I can't just look away knowing that I'm taking the lives of people who have loved ones and just want survive to see them again."

"We do what we must. It's an unfortunate answer but there isn't any other if you intend to survive. But that doesn't mean you can't feel. If it helps, never let go of what you felt in those moments. They prove that you're still you," Rhea said.

It was only a few months ago that Sora would have considered taking advice from a member of Moira's Crescent to be on par with a deal with the devil. What had happened between him and them was no different from how Rhea had described the darkness in people's hearts. Now, it seemed that their two different truths had become one. What that would take shape as, Sora couldn't wait to see, but if there was hope for him and Moira's Crescent, maybe the same could be said of the other factions one day. And of he and Roxas.

* * *

 **A/N: So hopefully I can return to a somewhat regular schedule although life has been hella hectic as of late. But here's a nice actiony chapter to tide you over until the next one. Next time, it's confrontation time between Sora and Xanatos. Just how he intends to fight Xanatos with his Keyblade having suffered six hits from the seven-branched sword, I hope to have you know as soon as possible.**


	57. The Rebel Child

Chapter 56

The Rebel Child

 ** _Hiro's Lab, San Fransokyo Institute of Technology_**

Hiro's lab, once his older brother's, hadn't looked like the laboratory of a scientist when Sora first entered the room. He supposed he had spent so much time in Ansem the Wise's lab that he had considered it the default image in his mind when he thought of a lab. No, there weren't containers strewn everywhere nor shelves of books for research. The only books he could find were two study textbooks sitting on the desk by the large circular window at the back of the room.

What he found instead were a few mathematical instruments such as an ellipsograph, drafting compass and calculator. There were a few boxes with machine parts lined up underneath the window and two glass panels to the right of the window, one behind the other. Anything else Sora tried to make out and he was sure it would probably result in an injured brain.

"Hey, you took my advice and got a mini fridge! Convenient, right?" Fred said as he opened something in the corner obscured by a printer.

"And a microwave too. Is this where the banana goes in?" Lysander asked.

Hiro's face twisted into something between a smile and confusion. "Err, what?"

"Forget him, he's kind of a weeb," Salome said.

"Anyway, how's Krei doing?" Rhea asked, finding the counter to lean against.

"Surprisingly well for a guy who's been targeted. Then again, it's not the first time," Hiro said. "But he told us where Xanatos was. An island of the coast of the mainland called Akuma Island. It used to be a test facility operated by Krei for research into portals and teleportation. One of the tests, the big one, failed and they closed down the facility to conceal what happened from the public."

"We've been there before but it was pretty run down," Honey Lemon told them.

"Xanatos has the money. He can fix the place up," Sora said. "And if that's where he is then that's where we'll be."

"Woah, hold on there, little man." To Sora's annoyance, Wasabi placed his hand on Sora's head to stop him from moving. "It's an island. Just how are you planning on getting there?"

"Err, you know, I hate when people raise good points. Okay, so what do you suggest?" Sora asked.

"We can get there since we have gliders. You don't have one, Sora?" Rhea asked.

"I mean… I never took the time to learn since I always had the Gummi Ship," Sora defended.

"Well, we do have Baymax. He can get you there, but you'll need some gear to keep yourself from falling off, hence magnets," Hiro said, holding up a pair of small transparent square pieces of plastic with both hands. "These things I kind of made while watching a nature documentary on marine wildlife. These work in much the same way as Octopus suction cups except, well, using electromagnets. Here, hold out your hands."

Sora stepped forward and did as Hiro had told him to. Hiro reached out and attached the plastics to each of Sora's gloves before looking to Baymax.

"Alright, just place a hand anywhere on Baymax," Hiro said. Sora stuck his left hand out and touched the Baymax's armor protected stomach. He flinched for a moment when just before his hand could actually touch Baymax, he felt a strange force of attraction clip his hand to the suit.

"Woah! Okay, that's pretty cool. I wasn't expecting that," Sora said.

"Took me awhile to develop them. They were supposed to help prove better mobility for myself around Baymax's armor," Hiro said.

"Cool. So, err… how do I take my hand off?" Sora asked as he tried to wring his arm away from Baymax.

"Huh? That's strange…" Hiro observed. Sora tried to use his other hand to push Baymax away so he could free himself only to mentally slap himself afterwards.

"Do you need… some help there?" Celes asked, as Sora continued to struggle to tear both hands away.

"No, wait… I think I… almost… got it-AAH!" Sora placed one foot against Baymax and leaned back, pushing hard. There was a plop and both hands came free, with Sora crashing into the boxes of machine parts nearby.

Hiro's mouth formed an 'O' and he snapped his fingers. "I… see the problem. I accidentally gave you one of the failed ones. I found they had a bit too powerful a grip. Hah, hah…"

"Um, that's all well and good for Sora but what about me? I can't exactly fly either," Celes said. "My character Maria in my play had wings when she came to her love in a dream but I'm not exactly her."

"Hey, I'm not called Fred Fredrickson for nothing," Fred began, flashing her a cool smile.

* * *

 ** _Akuma Island, San Fransokyo_**

The wind whipping gently across Sora's face as he flew on Baymax had promptly made up his mind. It would be difficult to go back to a Gummi Ship after something like this. He looked down below to see a speedboat carrying Celes, Hiro and his friends. Driving them was Fred's butler, who Fred theorized was once a spy who became the family butler not too long after retiring. Judging by his love for comic books, Sora wasn't too sure Fred's theory had any basis in reality.

It was only a few miles to the north, but Sora had honestly wished the journey was longer. As he neared the densely green island, worries he thought he had dealt with the previous night returned to haunt him. Was he truly prepared for this? Could he take whatever Xanatos threw at him? He couldn't expect to know the mind of someone who was good at manipulating them, but maybe he didn't need to in order to win this. The only way he could lose this fight was if he were too cautious. That's what Xanatos would likely be expecting. If all went well, he could thank Xion for helping him out during their sparring session.

Baymax slowed down as he descended and soon touched the ground. Sora pulled his hands off the magnetic armor with ease and stepped on to the ground to find Rhea waiting for them. Lysander and Salome had offered to stay behind to keep Krei safe. If Xanatos knew he had nothing to lose, then he had no reason not to go all out.

"There are quite a few trees around here. You need a hand to guide you?" Sora asked her.

"That's considerate of you but I'll be fine. There's quite a good breeze going here. I should be able to use it to navigate between them. And I have your footsteps of course," Rhea replied.

Sora smiled and looked to the water as the boat pulled up next to the island. Celes was first to climb off and joined Rhea and Sora. If he had to be completely honest with himself, Celes was most out of her element in the current roster of a group that they had. He had to keep an eye on her while they were fighting.

When the whole group were together, no further words needed to be said. They all knew what the target was and anything important had been spoken in Hiro's lab before they left. Having already been on the island before, Hiro and the others were the ones to lead the charge with Sora, Rhea and Celes close behind.

"You guys said this was a test facility for portals, but what was it before that? It was probably used for something else, right?" Sora asked.

There was a brief pause where Honey Lemon threw him a nervous glance. "It was a detention centre for immigrants and asylum seekers."

"Detention? Like when you do something bad at school and they make you stay behind writing the same lines over and over again like 'I will never do such and such again'?" Sora asked.

"Not exactly. It's not exactly the proudest part of our history. When two cultures come together to build a city like this, you wouldn't exactly expect that anyone who came to the city would be treated like dirt. But then the war happened. Suspicions ran amok and terror ruled the day. People were stripped from their families, accused of being here illegally or of being a spy. They call it a detention center because, like you said, you're supposed to stay there for a while, but with the way they were treated it would be more appropriate to say it was a jail."

"That's terrible," was all Sora could say.

"And even worse, we never really take the time to learn about it. Not in school, not anywhere. You actually have to ask the teacher to go into more detail if you want to know but it certainly isn't on the curriculum."

"I can understand why. Unless it was overtly in your face, people aren't going to choose to remember a dark part of their history if they can help it. It's revisionist and terrible but it's something that happens," Rhea said.

"A lot of things are just 'something that happens', aren't they?" Sora asked.

"It's not the answer you want to hear?"

"No, it isn't," Sora said. "But I know you probably don't know the answer yourself. That's not your fault. I guess I just don't get it and because I don't it annoys me. It's like… like we only exist to cause drama for ourselves."

"That's actually a theory I've read about once. An author penned an essay suggesting that we tend to indulge in negativity because it serves as a fuel to bolster positivity. Put simply, we need to have the bad to know the good and because we know that, be it consciously or unconsciously, we tend to sometimes sabotage ourselves from being at our peak potential," Rhea said.

"I thought you couldn't read," Sora said.

"Sora, I'm blind, not illiterate. We have this thing called braille," Rhea said.

"Oh."

Rhea giggled. "I understand what you mean. It's just that when I first joined Moira's Crescent, it was just me, Kohle and Kyle, who you knew as Abraxas. Kohle spent a lot of time collecting books for me and he even went out of his way to learn braille so he could translate every book in that library. And that was just for me."

"I guess he's not too bad a guy. That was really considerate of him," Sora said.

"And this whole time I was thinking that he was wasting away his time by giving to me. Turns out he had all the time in the world."

They soon reached the edges of the trees to find a building in a clearing, small but perfectly new.

"It's true then. This island continues to live up to its name," Honey said as the reached the front entrance. "Huh, no guards."

"Because they were most likely expecting us," Go Go replied.

"And when I'm good enough, what else could you possibly need."

Sora looked to his side at the newcomer's voice to find a man, blonde and wearing a blue suit and round eye glasses, over his shoulder. He spun around to face him only to find that he had completely disappeared from sight.

"I think you'll find that I'm over here."

The voice, closer to Sora's right ear than he would have liked, seemed to have the underlying tones of someone playing with his food. Sora looked to his right but once again found no one there.

"Or over here?"

From his left this time. Sora spun around to face the entrance again to see the man standing there. Sora recognized him. Always by Xanatos' side though Sora had never personally interacted with him. Still…

"How did you just do that? There's no way…" Sora said.

"Oh, is he a ninja? I bet he's some kind of ninja," Fred was all too eager to declare.

"And I bet that you're an idiot," Go Go said.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Owen Burnett, or so I was for a time. But that has no bearing on you. You've been quite the bothersome weed in Xanatos' otherwise wholesome garden. I offer you the choice to turn back now and forget your petty quest for vengeance, or die by my hands."

"Ooh, tough choice. I wouldn't usually fight a guy with glasses but if you're in the way of getting to Xanatos, I guess I'm going to make an exception just this once," Sora said, raising his Keyblade.

Burnett smiled and began snickering. It was a startling contrast to his previous demeanour. "Oh, I'm going to enjoy this. Let's see what this Keyblade of yours is made of."

As Burnett assumed a fighting stance, Sora frowned and looked over to Celes. "Is this guy serious? This is a waste of time."

"I think he's stalling for something. Want me to spare you the energy?" Celes asked.

"Please."

Celes unsheathed her Enhancer sword and imbued it with ice magic before running in. Stopping midway, she dragged the tip of her sword across the ground, sending waves of blue energy to rippling towards Burnett. Not even making an attempt to dodge it, Burnett was lifted into the air and carried by the waves for a few seconds. Celes closed in, swung from the outside and struck Burnett, launching him across the clearing and into the building's wall.

"Great! Now we can get goi- Will you stay down!" Wasabi yelled, watching as Burnett got back up and straightened his glasses.

"This isn't right," Sora heard Rhea say next to him. "There's something more to this. Sora, take the others and go on ahead to Xanatos. I'll help Celes."

"You sure?" Sora asked. Rhea hummed and nodded. Her words about something not being right rubbed him the wrong way, and he considered for a moment staying to make sure that everything was alright. But he knew his battle wasn't here, and expending his strength now probably would prove to be a pretty bad idea later.

Sora looked over at Hiro. "Let's go."

They had to go around him to cross the field, but once they did they found that Burnett made no attempt to stop them. Sora reminded himself not to hesitate and pressed on. When she heard the door close, Rhea summoned her Keyblade and held it up at Burnett.

"Alright, you can drop the façade. Who are you really?"

Owen Burnett chuckled and a small smirk appeared on his face. "And who are you supposed to be? His mother? I wasn't aware Keyblade wielders needed to coddled these days. Oh, how the mighty have fallen."

"Quit your games. She asked who you were!" Celes yelled.

"But games are a part of who I am. I live for games." Burnett raised his right hand to his glasses and removed them. A green mist rose up from underneath Burnett's feet, consuming him wholly for a few seconds. When the smoke finally disappeared, the broad shouldered man known as Owen Burnett had disappeared and in his place was a slender, thinner man with long white hair, long pointy ears and a youthful face.

"Yeah… I think I prefer the other guy," Celes said.

"Heeeere's Johnny! I kid. It's just Puck. Yup. Boring old Puck," his tone changed from incredibly ecstatic and energetic to dismal in the blink of an eye.

"Puck? The trickster spirit?" Rhea asked.

Celes' eyes grew big from curiosity. "You know him?"

"I've heard of him and his kind. They're known for sowing discord and propagating deception in the world. After the Keyblade War, they sought to take advantage of people's hopes for a better future by appearing in front of normal folk under the guise of mythical beings. Tales of gods and other legends spread far across the land because of them. And so they became the first enemies of a new order of Keyblade wielders who strove to keep the world safe. It was only with co-operation of the fairies that the Keyblade wielders managed to convince Oberon, the most powerful of the spirits, to impose rules on those he ruled over to prevent them from interfering with the mortal world ever again."

"Mortal world? So you mean to say-"

"He's immortal, naturally. Or nearly anyway."

"Naturally, you say. Let that not be the case," Celes said. "And what do you mean nearly?"

"Spirits, like fairies and other magical creatures, are usually immune to physical attacks. They also can be immune or highly resistant to magical attacks but certain things cause them to age aggressively."

"You know quite a lot. Yes, iron does have the effect on us. Oh, woopsie, I just told you my weakness! How careless of me." Puck covered his mouth to his hide the grin on his face.

"So what about steel then? That's what my enhancer's made of. Isn't that an alloy of iron and carbon?" Celes asked.

"It might have to be pure iron, I'm afraid. Still, it shouldn't pose too much of a problem. Don't let that put you down. He's a trickster which means he deals in illusions. You'll see things that I can't and likewise I'll hear things that you might not. If we work together we can take him down," Rhea said.

Puck threw them a disinterested look and folded his arms. "Must this all end in violence?"

"That's up to you."

"Violence, then. How bori-" Before Puck could finish croaking out his sentence, he was sent spinning through the air by an invisible attack.

"What just happened to him?" Celes asked.

"A special effect of my Keyblade. It puts effect ahead of cause, or the attack landing ahead of the strike."

"That's slightly confusing. How does that work?" Celes asked.

"Well… think of it like a bank. You can borrow money but you're expected to pay it back in return. It's like that," Rhea said.

"And what happens when you don't pay it back?" Celes asked. Rhea smiled at her and pulled up her top slightly to expose her midriff. A scar, long and as if coming from a sword stretched across her abdomen. Celes batted her eyes for a moment and forced down the lump in her throat before meeting Rhea's eyes. "You shouldn't use that attack then. It's too risky."

"A bit late to tell her that, isn't it?" Puck yelled as he got back up. "You made a deal with the devil. Now you're going to have to pay it back!"

Puck flew towards them both and slammed his hands into the grounds, creating a shockwave that caused the ground underneath Rhea and Celes to ripple like waves and send them to the ground.

* * *

 ** _Base Interior, Akuma Island_**

Slowly, Sora crossed across a large expansive room on a rusty metal walkway. It was the creaking that did it for him. Surprisingly, even with all of their weights on the bridge, it had somehow not collapsed. Perhaps that should have been enough to tell him that things would be alright if he picked up the pace a little more, but he still chose not to risk it.

"Don't look down. Don't look down. Come on, you can do this," Wasabi repeated behind him.

Go Go shook her head and looked over the railing, pretending to be interested. "Oh hey, there's a 1:10 scale diecast model train replica down there."

"Huh? Where? Where?!" Like an excited puppy, Wasabi sprang to life and began looking around. When his eyes met the ground and he realized Go Go's lie, he instantly began squirming again.

"Guys, will you take this seriously? We're in the enemy's base," Hiro said.

"Sora, I promise you we are not like this all of the time," Honey Lemon said.

"It's good. Great friends make for great heroes. I have a friend named Donald and we don't always see eye to eye on things but when it matters most we make a formidable team. I can tell you guys are the same," Sora said.

"Not too bad for a couple of college kids from San Fransokyo, huh," Wasabi said.

"And not too bad for an islander out in the middle of nowhere either," Sora said.

Honey's eyes lit up at the his mention of the island. "You're from an island? I've always wanted to go to a resort one where you just lay by the beach sipping on a mojito and watching the sun go down."

"Not sure I'd call it a resort but yeah, it was always nice to just nap on the beach and listen to the sound of waves washing up to shore and back again. I actually first started this whole thing when I was Hiro's age."

"So then it'd been three years? We haven't even been through our first yet," Hiro said.

"Which is why I know you're going to do a lot of great things. If this is what you have to show for it in the first year? Yeah, you'll be ahead of me in no time," Sora said.

Hiro laughed. "I doubt that. We still have a long ways to go."

Once they reached the opposite side of the room, the group ran over to the automatic sliding doors and stepped into a bright long hallway with another set of doors just ahead.

"Doesn't this place seem kind of empty to you?" Wasabi asked.

"Oh, don't start with that. I don't need to think about that right now," Go Go said.

"There is an eighty two per cent chance that this is a trap," Baymax said.

"Oh, only eighty two? Well! That's me satisfied," Wasabi said.

"Uh, guys. Is anyone getting some serious _The Shining_ vibes from this hallway?" Fred asked.

"I do not get the reference," Baymax said.

Fred looked incredulously at Hiro. "You still haven't shown him that one?"

"Please, I think _Rocky_ has more to say about indeterminable will and the fighting spirit than an insane writer," Hiro said. At last, they soon reached the door and it slid open only to reveal yet another white hallway. They repeated the motions two more times. Travelled across the long empty white hallway, reached the end with the automatic door and stepped in to find themselves in yet another white hallway.

"Yeah, forgot what I said. He should have watched _Groundhog Day_ instead," Fred said. Trying to remain positive, Honey instantly perked up after seeming to find the energy. "Maybe it's at the end of this one! Just one more…"

"Save your energy. The base shouldn't be this long, at least it didn't seem like it from the outside. We're being played for fools," Go Go said.

"So we're in some kind of loop? How did Xanatos pull this off?" Sora asked.

"Maybe if we head backwards, we might actually end up going forwards?" Hiro suggested. Sora didn't see the logic in this but a loop wasn't necessarily logical to begin with so he agreed to it with a nod. When they tested out Hiro's theory however they found just as much success as they had found going forward, which was to say not at all.

"Uh, maybe we really were going the right way then? Maybe the dude's just really really boring when it comes to decoration," Wasabi said.

"No, I believe Hiro's hypothesis is correct. As we were heading back, I paid particular detail to the composition of each room in regards to dirt made from our shoes and strands of hair. Even as we went backward, I noted no evidence of our being there. To add to this loop theory, I believe the room is resetting each time we step foot in it," Baymax said.

"And we could probably even confirm that if we left something behind. If we go out and then back again we'd have our answer," Hiro said. So Honey Lemon pulled out one of her grenades from her chem-bag and dropped it on the ground. The group left through the door to their right and returned right after to find the grenade missing.

"Well, I'm not exactly sure we should be happy your experiment was successful. We're trapped then," Sora said, leaning against the wall. "And I wondered why Xanatos' assistant let us through so easily. He probably knew this was waiting for us."

* * *

"What is that?" Celes asked, her eyes glued to the snow globe that had materialized in Puck's hands.

"Oh, nothing really. Only a representation of your friends. As of right now, they have probably started to suspect that they are marching on endlessly to a tune of my making but are powerless to prevent it. I'm the only one capable of releasing them from this spell, which, unfortunately, is a problem for you. You do need to hit me after all with that Keyblade to not pay the price of that special move of yours. But you don't know what will happen to the globe and your friends if you do. Don't you just love choices where someone suffers no matter what you pick?"

"You're a coward!" Celes yelled angrily. She looked to Rhea for guidance. "What do we do?"

"We fight," Rhea said.

"Well I know we have to pay back the oath you made but Sora and the others-"

"Need our help. Being trapped for the rest of your life is no way to live. Even if it's a risk, I have to take it. And I know Sora won't give up so easily because try as Moira's Crescent did to kill him he kept coming back. I also have one more reason to fight. Puck is a trickster."

"Right. He's not likely to be telling the entire truth. Okay, let's fight," Celes said.

"So you've chosen your friends' deaths. How tactless buuuutttt... fine by me." Puck flew up into the air and summoned a scepter. He twirled it around before sending a flurry of flames and ice attacks towards them. Celes coated her Enhancer in fire and absorbed the first fire attack from Puck before unleashing it back at him. Puck held his scepter out and absorbed the magic before slamming the tip of it into the ground, displacing its energy into the ground and sending out a shockwave.

Feeling the vibration on the ground, Rhea timed her roll correctly and then threw her Keyblade like a boomerang. Puck pulled the scepter from the ground quickly and knocked the Keyblade away. Celes came in from the left, jumped and slashed, cutting into his torso.

"Hahahaha! That tickled!" Puck laughed and backhanded Celes across the face, sending her stumbling in the opposite direction. "It's like you've forgotten that your attacks can't hurt me!"

Rhea recalled her Keyblade back to her and ran in to attack. Puck turned to her and twirled his scepter before throwing more magic her way. Rhea knocked the attacks away, closed the distance between them and began slashing back and forth, hoping to catch Puck with one of her attacks. Puck was surprisingly agile and graceful, managing to dodge her attacks with relative ease and had no qualms in laughing while doing so. Caught up in his own excitement, he failed to prevent Celes taking advantage of the situation to jump on his back. Her sword ready, she plunged it down into Puck's chest again and again with hesitation. Puck eventually managed to grab hold of her by the collar and her throw her off. Those few seconds of lack of control were all Rhea needed to catch Puck anywhere and strike him with her Keyblade.

Puck backed away and looked at his arm where the attack had caught him. A part of his forearm near his elbow, once youthful and glowing, had turned wrinkly. The spirit winced at this and looked over at Rhea in disgust.

"Guess I kept my oath after all," Rhea said. "Also, I find it strange that you haven't just taken my friends' lives already. Or is it not as simple as that?"

Puck glared and wiped his mouth of saliva. "Friend? Half a year ago you would have been itching to kill each other, much to Mr. Xanatos' delight."

"What a shame then. Looks like you'll have to get your entertainment elsewhere," Rhea said. "Why side with Xanatos? What is he offering you?"

"I suppose you could say… a journey?" Puck said. When Rhea screwed up her face in confusion, Puck continued. "When I first met him, something about him struck me as different compared to so many others. He wished to prove to his father that he was a self-made man yet he never bore any hatred or desperation to prove himself. He was calm and could make the best out of a losing situation, whereas any other person would not be nearly as eager to jump back in right away. One day I decided to reveal my true self to him to see how he would react. He was not shocked. On the contrary, he spoke to me as if he had known my true self his whole life. When I offered him the choice between any one wish and my life in his hands, he chose the latter. He could have had what he wanted then and there but instead he chose to struggle, because earning something was much valuable to him than having it given to him."

"But don't spirits like freedom? Why would you willingly give that up?" Rhea asked.

"What is a story that has no beginning, middle and end? My life could be free, yes, but when I had all the time in the world what rush was there to do anything. If I could have someone I could follow, someone who, despite their mortality, had the will to beat time, the ultimate enemy… now that was something I had to see," Puck said. "And now that we've neared the end of this tale, I'll do anything to make sure that it does indeed come to its conclusion, even if I can't be there to see it."

"It will end, but not the way you think it will," Rhea said.

"Ooh, I love surprises!" Puck yelled. He threw himself into the attack, twirling and swinging his scepter around with energy. Rhea managed to pick out the directions of each swing with her hearing and dodged before clashing Keyblades with the scepter. The icy magic imbued in the scepter rippled out and dispersed into thin air as Rhea and Puck struggled to push each other back. Celes ran in from the side and put all her weight into her shoulder, knocking Puck away from Rhea.

Rhea ran forward and struck with her Keyblade again, moving to the side so Celes could attack with her sword. Taking turns, they alternated attacks, constantly moving around Puck and striking. When they both back in the front with each other, they lifted their weapons up and brought them down, striking him in the chest.

Puck snarled and backed away, before holding up the globe. "I'll DO IT! YOUR FRIENDS WILL BE GONE IN AN INSTANT! POOF! SMASHED TO TINY PIECES!"

Celes pulled away from a moment as if hesitant but one look from Rhea restored her confidence. Without words, Celes understood what Rhea was trying to tell her.

 _Trust me._

Rhea turned back to Puck and ran forward, who could only hold out the globe with gritted teeth. Sweeping in low, she moved in to strike only to throw her Keyblade upwards. Celes jumped and caught Ciorsdan by the handle, bringing it down to strike Puck right down the middle.

"Hngh! AH-" With his arms spread, Puck fell backwards and hit the ground, the snow globe rolling away from him. "Well… that hurts… quite a bit."

"And there's a lot more where that came from if you don't stay down," Celes said. She gently took hold of Rhea's wrist and placed the Keyblade back into her hand before looking back to Puck.

A tear fell from Puck's eye down to his cheek, and he looked up at the sky. "O' child of Oberon, what ails you? Oh how I wish I could have seen the end of this story, but I suppose mine is simply another chapter closed. I had often wondered what intrigued us spirits about the realm of light. What could something with such dark corners compare to the forests of Avalon? Now that I've seen it through your eyes, I know what you know, and feel as you do. This is a world… worth dying for…"

With a final gasp of breath, Puck lay still. His skin quickly grew wrinkly and old until it turned into dust and flew off when a sudden gust of wind ran through the area.

Celes said. "What was his problem? And he couldn't resist a soliloquy, could he?"

"It's fine. He spoke and fought only for what he believed in. There's a beauty in that, even if it didn't align with our beliefs. Xanatos, a mortal, was able to change a trickster's heart," Rhea said. "Anyway, we ought to join up with Sora and the others, don't you think? Where's the globe?"

Celes looked around them and then back at Rhea with a nervous look. "Ah, it's missing!"

"It must have disappeared when Puck did. Well, there's only one way to find out if we didn't screw up. Lead the way." Rhea said.

"So, how is it that the Keyblade could do damage against Puck anyway? Is it made of iron?" Celes asked as they set off towards the building.

"No. Well, I'm sure it could be but not pure iron. Coincidentally, the Keyblade was also made of Orichalcum misshapen in the presence of quartz crystals. There's a bit more to it than that but the gist is that there was once a belief that spirits like fairies and elves carried a piece of the light inside them. The Keyblade would be able to capture that light. It's not the orichalcum itself that they're weak to, but the energy leftover from the process of merging that with a quartz crystal."

"Capture the light? So the Keyblade could lock away spirits?" Celes asked.

"That's a nice of putting it. The Keyblade has a long and dark history, but Sora and Moira's Crescent, we're fighting to make it right. We don't need to be like those who came before. I only wish I'd seen that sooner, before everything this past year happened," Rhea said. The darkness that had pervaded humanity since time immemorial had found its way into Moira's Crescent for the briefest of time, but it had been enough to do damage to any credibility they might have had. She intended to fix that when all was said and done. The worst part was that that darkness was not done with them. Kohle would need whatever help he could get to resist that same darkness.

* * *

 **A/N: So to go in to Puck and the fairy lore involving the Keyblade would open up a whole other can of worms, but I like to think anyway that fairies and other spirits went into hiding because of the Keyblade and, after the war, slowly began to return to the Realm of Light when the new Keyblade wielders proved themselves to be benevolent and willing to co-operate. Of course, this hasn't actually been stated in the story so just take it as supplementary information that doesn't matter until it does. Anyway, next chapter will be the big battle with Xanatos. Until then, constructive criticism is always welcome and a like and follow would be incredibly appreciated!**


	58. The End of KRONOS

Chapter 57

The End of KRONOS

When Sora had first been introduced to Xanatos by the restoration committee, he hadn't exactly been trusting of the man. There had been something in those few minutes of interaction that had made him uneasy. Perhaps it had been Riku's doubtful nature at the time that had been infectious on Sora. But as he spent more time with the man, he couldn't find any reason to be suspicious of him. He had seemed like he genuinely want to help rebuild Radiant Garden. He was a man who commanded the respect of those around him, and it had not taken long for Sora to see why that was. The self-made man who could spare time for others. He was the perfect example of what someone could strive to be.

He remembered Yeul's frightened look while they were at the dinner party with Xanatos. He should never have forgotten that look. Xanatos had played the game well from the start, introducing them to his deceased wife and child probably in an attempt to gain sympathy. How could he not be expected to let his guard down after that?

"Man, that loop was annoying. Good thing we found our way out of it… somehow," Wasabi said as the group ascended up a flight of stairs.

"Rhea and Celes must have done something. Maybe?" Honey suggested.

"Well, it certainly wasn't us, though I wish it was. Maybe the hallway heard Wasabi and Honey panicking there for a second and didn't want to put up with it," Sora said.

"My deepest sympathies to the hallway," Go Go said.

"Okay, okay, don't act like you two weren't scared either for a moment," Wasabi said.

"Please, I knew that the situation would take care of itself. It always does," Sora defended.

"Um, guys? We might have a problem…" Hiro said, who had been leading in front. Upon entering a large hangar, they found themselves being flanked by several statues of monsters. Looking closely, Sora noted that several of them had keys, indicating them to be Wraith.

"Well this is a strange sight. I'm assuming Xanatos isn't into sculpting as a hobby?" Honey asked.

"He could be, but if he's been doing all this then he has way too much time on his hands," Sora said.

A chuckle came from across the room. Sora walked slowly to the left to look past the statues and see Xanatos. That grin. Sora had convinced himself ever since seeing it in the Keyblade Graveyard that it was a true reflection of David Xanatos, and ever since he had only ever pictured the man with that same smarmy grin.

"You know I have all the time in the world when it comes to you, Sora," Xanatos said, his voice booming from across the room. "Or did anyway. But this rabbit's not yet down hatching its plans. If you wish to stop me, you'll have to come at me with everything you have. Of course, _they_ might have something to say about that."

Sora backed up as the statues all began to crack, chipping away small pieces of stone one at a time.

"I couldn't help but wonder. What if I were to use this new version of the chimera drug on these creatures? Alas, I suppose I'll never see the results for myself. But you can tell me. If you're able." Xanatos turned his back to them and stepped into the elevator.

"Wait! Stop!" Sora called out. He was about set off into a full on sprint when he stopped at the sight of a hand coming out of one of the statues. It wasn't just any hand however. It was a human hand, flesh and slender digits.

"Are these… people?" The words came from Hiro's mouth before Sora could fully comprehend what was happening. Large portions of the statues had now fallen to the floor to reveal more and more people. What horrified them the most is that they looked to be children, judging by their faces.

"No… it can't be…" Sora said under his breath. He spun around after hearing the sound of something smashing through and rocks falling to the floor. One of the children had broken away from their statues and now stood with their body hunched over and their arms slumped.

"Um, are you okay? Do you know how you got here?" Honey asked the girl. The child straightened up and looked over to them, revealing her gray eyes. Honey slowly walked over to the girl against Wasabi and Go Go's protests and slowly reached out for her. "It's going to be alright. We'll get you home to your parents."

"Home…? Parents…?"

Honey nodded. "Yes. Do you have a mommy and daddy?"

"Honey…" Sora warned, but it was too late. The girl suddenly let out a shrill scream and began to cry. Just then, the other children smashed through their own prisons with their postures in much the same position as the girl's had been initially.

"All these children… they can't be… _Hngh_!" A splitting headache suddenly overwhelmed Sora and he pressed his palm to his forehead.

 ** _Flashback_**

 _The swaying of the ship soon died and with it, my rhyme and reason that I associated with those gentle waves and the creaking of the floorboards came to an end. The anxiety and panic that had followed me up until half way through our boat ride had returned._

 _I wasn't the only one. Looking around me, the mood was clear to read. It was a dismal atmosphere with a silence so overwrought that I wished whatever happened next just did._

 _I looked over to my left to see her classmate comforting a crying green-haired girl. She hadn't recognized her, but not everyone who had been kidnapped had been a part of the same class or even school._

 _The door soon opened to possibly the slowest and more tortuous of creaks, and in stepped a man clad in a full suit of armor. I looked over to Pandora and barely nodded in her direction. I had been thinking of this moment ever since we had come up with this plan. My fear of what could be trounced on any immediate worry for the others around me. I would be putting mine and Pandora's life ahead of theirs, yes, but I also couldn't escape the fears that haunted me, visited me every night as I slept._

 _He told us to line up and follow. Outside, more of them were waiting for us, their expressions masked by iron helmets. I paid no more attention to them than that. Pandora and I made sure to move slowly in order to end up last in the cue._

 _I soon took my first steps in daylight for what had felt like an awfully long time. It had seemed like we had landed on a beach somewhere. The sky was a shade of orange the likes I had never seen before. Were it not for the horrifying occasion I found myself in, I would even have been tempted to stand there and stare at the sunset for as long as I could until I could stand it no more. I had always been this way. Sunrises. Sunsets. They were picture perfect memories for me to capture in my sketches. Of course, now wasn't the time to be thinking of that. I would have plenty of time to dwell on art when I escaped from here. I had already told Pandora that she could be my muse and I fully intended on keeping that promise._

 _The group took off from the beach, and a problem immediately presented itself that threw everything we were hoping for into jeopardy. The knights had organized themselves in a way that blocked any chance of slipping away unnoticed. I could be sure that the moment I tried something, I would pay for it dearly._

 _What luck then, that one of the children happened to fall sick and threw up not too long after we departed from the ship on another child. The other child began wailing and not too long after, the knights had to be brought in just to restrain both children. Pandora took hold of my hand while the knights were distracted and we slipped into a some bushes nearby. Knowing that the danger was not yet truly over until we were far away from them, we stayed crouched and quickly made our way through the narrow path available to us. At several moments, I could feel stinging nettles brushing across my arms and legs. I gritted my teeth and tried my best to ignore the irritation on my skin, telling myself over and over that it was a far cry from what could happen if we were caught again._

 _Eventually we emerged out a good distance away from them, though our bodies were covered in rashes. It wasn't ideal, but at least we were alive._

" _I can't believe how lucky we were. If that boy hadn't vomited our plan might not have worked," I told Pandora as I alternated between running each hand up and down the opposite arm._

" _This town… I've seen it in my visions." Pandora glanced at Namine for a moment before looking around. "I think there's a tunnel nearby. It should take us to the other side of town. Let's go."_

 _Those visions again. Had Pandora somehow foreseen our escape? If she had then why did I feel like I was carrying the confidence for the both of us? Or maybe I was thinking too hard about this. In any case, my body itched and I could stand in one spot no longer. I decided to put my questions aside and instead sought shelter and comfort. We headed up the hill and located the tunnel almost immediately. As I entered, I felt a sense of relief wash over me. I had done what I thought had been impossible. The only real question on my mind now was where to go next._

 ** _End Flashback_**

"What in the world…? Again?" Sora's eyes opened and he slowly lowered his hand from his forehead. He had experienced the same out of body sensation when he had been in the tomb near DunBroch. And Pandora again. But who was he watching this all from?

"Sora!"

 _No time to think now_ , Sora thought as he looked up in time to see a large key coming down on him. He spun out of the way and backed up to the others.

"These are just kids, aren't they? What do we do?" Fred asked.

"Is this how you thought you'd beat us, Xanatos?" Sora whispered to himself. He wouldn't have been surprised if a part of Xanatos' reasoning for doing this was to torture Sora further. He had probably known about what had happened in Ratigan's sewers and saw fit to hit him where it was sure to hurt. Well, he was through suffering. He never wanted to feel like he did back then again.

"Well, whatever we decide, we can't hurt them! They're probably being brainwashed!" Honey yelled, throwing a grenade on the ground. This erected a small fence of ice in front of them, blocking off the children's path but leaving them vulnerable at the sides.

"Yeah, we need to hold them off. Get their weapons away from them. Sora, go and find Xanatos," Go Go said.

"What? No! I can't leave you guys," Sora said, shaking his head.

"Then what was the entire reason we came here? You have to do this. You can't let him get away."

Sora stared blankly at the fence of ice, unsure of how to proceed. A part of it was definitely fear. Fear of being alone, except that he wouldn't be alone. He'd be with Xanatos, where anything could happen.

"We won't die. If there was ever a time to prove who we are, it's now," Hiro said. "And you gave us that chance. That's something we can't repay if we're dead, right?"

"Okay. Good luck," Sora muttered. He composed himself, took one last look at the team and set off in a run. He dodged out of the way of several attacks and reached the elevator. He jammed his thumb against the button, then turned around to face his incoming opponents.

A downwards swing forced him to dodge out of the way. He manoeuvred around the child and pushed him into another child before backing away into the open elevator. After pressing another button, he could do nothing more except stand and watch as Hiro and the others fended off the brainwashed children. It took every bone in his body not to convince himself to leave the elevator before it closed. When it did, he leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.

His fingers found themselves combing the air, almost as if he were reaching out through some invisible plane. He imagined Luna's fingers in his. It really had seemed like a lifetime ago that he had seen her. If she were with him, perhaps then he could at least feel somewhat comforted. Instead, he would open his eyes and find only himself in this small rectangle ascending to who knew where.

The vibration under his feet stopped and the door slid open with more gusto than he felt it should have, or maybe that was just his imagination.

"A few years ago, this room would play host to world changing event, had it succeeded. They had experimented with interdimensional travel and portal technology. They called this project Silent Sparrow. This new format of transportation would allow mankind to venture farther into the unknown than ever before. Barriers would break down and lines drawn once long ago in the sand would be swept away by the tide of revolution that was to come. Had that experiment succeeded, the worlds would most likely have been aware of each other long before you received the Keyblade. Imagine what would have happened had that experiment been a success? You and I could have led completely different lives. All those things that you did yesterday, you may never have done at all."

"But it failed, and now we're here," Sora responded.

Xanatos turned around to face him. He was fitted from feet to shoulders in the red exo armor he had worn in Atlantis. Two red metal wings also sprouted out from the suit's back.

"Yes we are," he said with a vain smirk.

"Don't make it as if some event in past unconnected to you made you do all these things. Everything you've done, to me, to Roxas, to my friends… you've done with your own two hands, with your own sick thoughts."

"Sick, you say? Then tell me. Where would we be now had we not done what we'd done?"

" _We_?"

"Like it or not, I couldn't have done it without you. This was a team effort, although one I don't think you're quite proud of sharing the limelight in. Well?" Xanatos stretched out his arms. "I'm waiting. The future you strive for now is only possible because the worlds are united again, no? And who brought that about? You like to play the hero and yet you won't even take credit for your biggest accomplish. You've changed the world… for the better. That's not something that can be said lightly. On the pile of manure that is the history of Keyblade wielders, you stand as the golden crop. You can take what you've earned and rewrite history to your liking, but instead you deny it, clouded by your hatred towards me."

"You know, for all the psychiatric evaluations I let you do on me you know nothing about me. There's not a day that goes by where I don't feel like a burden is lifted off my chest. Do you know how hard it is, running around fighting the darkness and saving others while keeping a secret like that hidden to those people? Of course I've thought sometimes about shouting out to the whole world that they weren't alone. When I walk past a marketplace and I hear some child ask their parent 'Why us?', I just wanted to walk up to them and tell them 'It's not just you', but I couldn't. Now I'll never have to. So of course I'm happy to not have to hide the existence of other worlds, but I don't have to be happy with the method that was used to obtain it, or the sacrifices made along the way."

"That's amusing coming from a wielder of a weapon that was made not without trial and error and fair few sacrifices along the way," Xanatos said.

"I'm not proud about that either but at least-" Here Sora paused and frowned. "How do you know about that? The only way I found out about that was through-"

"Mirage."

That hadn't been what he was expecting. "What?"

"She must have been snooping around under orders of Yen Sid. Imaging that, a double agent. When we found her, a man called Janus offered a certain solution. That to make her talk, we use some of the Chimera agent I was supplying to him. I was completely against it, of course. The drug wasn't meant to extract information from people like that. He went ahead and did it behind my back anyway."

"Xanatos… what happened to her?" Sora stressed.

"She's... in a vegetative state. She did end up talking, according to Janus, but her strong-willed mind, even to this day, is constantly battling with the Chimera drug. It's induced her into a coma, one she may never wake up from."

Something in Sora snapped, like lights in a house going out and covering it in pitch black darkness. With the ferocity of an animal who had come across another encroaching on its territory, Sora lunged forward and cut downward with the Kingdom Key. Xanatos evaded to the right with ease, grabbed Sora's left arm, yanked it to the side and kneed him in the gut. Sora almost toppled over only to quickly use his Keyblade as a crutch to keep himself standing.

"Well that composure lasted all of, what, three minutes? I won't mince words, Sora, I'm slightly disappointed."

He was right, though Sora hated to admit it. Even he was disappointed in himself. He had told himself that no matter what Xanatos threw his way, he could shake it off with a steady pace and discipline. Already he wasn't off to a very good start. Nothing would come of denying and retaliating against Xanatos' claims except frustration. He had to get that in his head now.

"I'm sick of all your mind games. People's lives aren't yours to toy with and do as you please," Sora said.

"So you'll kill me then?"

There was a brief pause. "I'll do what I think is necessary."

"And how do you intend to do that? Or have your forgotten that I hold the key to your key's destruction?" Xanatos reached below table next to him and retrieved a familiar looking sword with seven branches jutting out across the blade's length.

"How could I forget? And considering what it did to Aqua's Keyblade I don't need to doubt that it actually can break my Keyblade anymore. But if you think that will stop me, you haven't being paying attention lately," Sora said. He let the Keyblade disappear in his hand and pulled two daggers out from inside his jacket.

Fourteen hits. He could afford fourteen hits. If he couldn't beat him within that limit then it was all over. No. Xion had entrusted him her weapons as a way of being by his side in spirit. He wouldn't let her down. But still… it meant nothing if he couldn't bust through that armor of his, so magic was the way to go for a while.

"Not confident enough?" Xanatos mocked.

"Oh, positively terrified," Sora shot back sarcastically. He whipped his left dagger to the side and stabbed it into the wall before blasting fire magic at Xanatos with his free hand. Xanatos held up his arm in a triumphant pose and took the hit directly before redirecting the shot back at Sora who dodged out of the way.

"Did you think I was collecting data on your skills just to make the Omnidroids unstoppable? No, as powerful as they may be they're still machines. I also made some revisions to my own exo suit for the day we would me again," Xanatos said. "What's the saying again? A leopard can't change its spots? You're welcome to prove me wrong, of course."

Sora pulled the dagger out from the wall and threw a few slightly awkward attacks Xanatos' way, trying to remember his training with Xion. Of course, it was impossible to be as adept with only two hours of training behind his belt, so he wasn't surprised he was making clumsy mistakes. However, he did have the speed to recover from those mistakes so as long as he didn't dwell too long on it, he could avoid Xanatos capitalizing on them.

He couldn't keep up his swing and step back tactic forever though. Xanatos managed to pick out a moment of time where Sora had been a little too slow to pull back and punished him for it, swinging upwards with his clenched fist. Connecting with just underneath his ribcage, Sora fell short of breath and was launched upwards, hitting the ceiling and dropping his daggers in the process. When he fell back to the ground, he had barely any time to roll out of the way as Xanatos stabbed the seven-branched sword into the ground where he had been.

Opportunity struck and grabbed the closest dagger to him and stabbed it into Xanatos' side. Sora had expected it to scrape against metal, but instead the dagger found its mark. With Xanatos distracted by the dagger, Sora shot up and hugged Xanatos' waist, thunder surging him as far back as he possibly could.

Xanatos' back hit the wall. With the height advantage, Xanatos gripped Sora's shoulder and threw three punches, two aimed for his stomach and the other his face. He grabbed the other shoulder and flipped Sora around so that he was pinned against the wall.

"Just let me know when you want to quit, Sora. Wouldn't be the first time."

A cocky grin formed out of Sora's busted lip. He spat out blood before replying. "Is that mercy? Don't need it. I know your weak spot and now that I do, I'll keep coming."

The key to his Xanatos' weakness was mobility. For all the other upgrades he had made to combat Sora's abilities, being able to move within the move within the armor must have limited how crazy he could go with the design. And if Sora was right about that, then there were a fair few other weak spots he could target as well. Strangely enough, it had crossed his mind briefly when he saw the suit again but it almost seemed as if it had been designed with a completely different purpose in mind.

To escape his grasp, Sora did the only thing he could think of in his head, which was to use head. He slammed his forehead into the helmet, causing Xanatos to release him and stumble back. Sora summoned his Keyblade quickly, jumped and swung, tearing into the helmet of Xanatos head. Xanatos stepped back and tore the cracked mask off his head. He didn't seem irritated. Quite the opposite, he seemed to be enjoying it.

Xanatos soon moved again. Before his seven-branched sword could meet the Keyblade, Sora threw it aside and used the other dagger to block the attack. The sword cut through the dagger's feeble defence with ease and with nothing else to block, Sora brought his right hand up, creating a wall of ice in between them.

Taking this time to breathe, Sora slowly backed away from the wall thinking he was safe. He flinched for a moment however when Xanatos punched through the wall of ice for what he suspected was for no other reason than to show that he could. Xanatos moved around what remained of the ice wall and grabbed Sora's dagger, pulling it from his side with gritted teeth and throwing it over to Sora.

Sora raised one of the daggers above his shoulder and was about to attack when the elevator he had come through opened again, this time with Celes and Baymax stepping out.

"Sora-"

"Sorry, dear, Sora will be with you soon," Xanatos said. Sora barely had time to turn before he was lifted off the ground and brought through a glass window to emerge in an evening slowly turning to night. The wind whipped against his face and Sora dared not look down for fear of what he might find. Instead, he concentrated on what was above him. Opening his palm, he began casting multiple combinations of magic with little mind to the area he targeted. All the while, he could feel the heat, or lack thereof, of his spells as they left his palm and collided with their target.

Embers, shards of ice and crackles of lightning disappeared far behind them as the speed at which they were moving through the air picked up. Xanatos flew and spun all over the place, making the experience as uncomfortable and dizzying for Sora as possible. He could make out bits and pieces of the world around him. Copious amount of blue, shifting about amorphously… Sora didn't want to think about having to take a swim again any time soon.

This was not a ride he was in control of however. As they zipped around, Xanatos' grip over Sora loosened and the teen fell towards the sea. Sora summoned his Keyblade and aimed it up quickly at Xanatos' moving form, shooting out his plasma claw to latch onto him. Sora swung through the air, using it as pendulum to swing up in front of Xanatos and hit him with a dropkick.

With nothing to grip onto, Sora fell screaming to the sea. All his good idea had really just been saved up for that one attack, and he had been hoping to make something else off it, but he had probably been hoping for too much.

He didn't even really have time to remember his loved ones either. Before he knew it, he had hit something… solid. He looked down to see Baymax and the water a few feet below them both.

"You're crazy, you know that?" Sora said, shaking his head with a grin.

"According to medical expertise, craze is described as being mentally deranged or unstable, of which I am neither so I am not sure I understand-"

"Uh huh, that's great. We can't let him get away," Sora said, summoning his Keyblade again. Baymax confirmed that he understood with an "affirmative" before shooting off like a rocket into the air. Even with Hiro's suction cups, Sora wasn't entirely sure they could keep him on a Baymax travelling at this speed.

At this point, Xanatos was no longer flying away from them but towards them. At least if they were fighting in the sky, Xanatos wouldn't be able to get close enough to use the Seven-Branched Sword. Sora aimed the Keyblade at an angle and fired jet after jet of bright flames through the sky. A few of them trailed past Xanatos' shoulders while the others that were sure to hit were met with blue beams from the particle beam cannon on Xanatos' right hand.

Neither seemed to let up, and red and blue collided in a splash of colors as they danced around in the sky. It would have been a beautiful sight too if he hadn't been doing it with a man he detested.

"Baymax, boost!" Sora yelled. Baymax accelerated forward with a burst of speed and slammed into Xanatos, knocking him further back. Sora grinned and gave a fist pump. "Yes! Okay, don't let him recover. Give him the old one-two!"

"Affirmative!" Baymax replied before moving in closer. He threw his fists out one at a time at the dazed Xanatos. Each punch pushed him even farther back. Eventually, he regained his balance enough for him to blast Baymax back with his particle beam cannon. Sora's world went spinning as he and Baymax were sent hurtling through the air. Up and down were two images that merged and became one. When his vision cleared he found himself hanging from Baymax with one hand still attached to the robot's back.

"I would ask that you please calm down. Everything is under control," Baymax tried to assure him over Sora's shrill screaming.

"Oh, that's easy for you to say!" Sora cried out. Now he suddenly understood Luna's fear of heights. If she had been in the situation, the fear alone would probably have done her in before anything below her ever could.

"I apologize in advance for what I am about to do. Please remain calm," Baymax said.

"Wait, what are you about to do- AAAAHH!" Sora screamed as Baymax suddenly dropped in elevation, flinging him upwards. Sora scrambled to catch air, though he knew it do no good for him. Instead, it was Baymax who once again caught him on his back.

"That was not calm-"

"I KNOW!" Sora snapped. He closed his eyes and breathed in and out before opening them again. Xanatos was once again in sight, not running but facing them.

"He's not letting up. We have to finish this here and now," Sora said. "If he wants a head on fight that's exactly what I'll give him. Charge at him again."

Baymax boosted forward once again, and Sora carefully adopted a half kneeling position on his back. At the same time, Xanatos flew towards them, the Seven-Branched Sword poised to strike with both hands.

 _Almost there…_

 _Almost theeerrreee…_

 _Now!_

Sora leaped off Baymax and flipped forward, executing a perfect strike with his Keyblade that severed Xanatos' right wing. Baymax travelled under Xanatos and Sora landed back on him, wobbling a bit before pressing his hand back on Baymax to steady himself.

"Heh, now that's what I'm talking about!" Sora yelled, watching as Xanatos began flying in a spiral towards the lantern lit San Fransokyo bridge. Baymax followed close behind and soon witnessed him landing on the south tower of the bridge. As he made to land, Baymax failed to notice an incoming particle beam. The shot hit Baymax in his right wing, sending him sideways.

Sora hung on for dear life as Baymax struggled to stay level. "Baymax! Hold on!"

"You must jump," Baymax said.

"Huh?"

"Jump!"

And so without a second's thought, Sora leapt off robot when they were near the tower and barely managed to grab the ledge. He looked to his left and he could just barely make out Baymax disappearing down below the bridge. Focusing on himself, Sora used what felt like all of his strength to pull himself up onto solid ground. It's probably what he deserved for slacking on building his upper body strength all these years. Every attempt by Riku to force Sora to do so had ended in failure. Now left red-faced and panting hard, he fully understood that his friend had only the best of intentions in mind.

"Look at this place. Beautiful, isn't it? It was on a night and in a city much like this that I fell in love with a woman." Sora looked up while breathing to see Xanatos standing by the edge, looking at the brightly lit city in the distance. "Her name was Fox. Together, we had a son. Alexander Fox Xanatos. It's truly amazing what having a child can do for a person. Their whole perspective on life changes, and suddenly they live not just for themselves, but for their loved ones. I only knew ambition and the drive to do better until Alex came into my life. Then the Heartless came and took everything that made me strong. Like an old friend had once told me, love is not a weakness, but it had become my weakness. I don't know whether it was the universe correcting itself because I had strayed from some path I had no way of knowing of or that I was simply not meant to have happiness. In any case, my world crumbled then and there. I had had my heart stabbed and I knew that if I were ever to overcome it, I would need to retrace my steps. Go back to the man I used to be."

Xanatos turned around to face him and tapped his shoulder. There was a sound like something decompressing before the exo suit opened up and crumbled to the floor.

"Within aspirations and ambitions lie opportunities. I must seek my opportunity. Once opportunity is found, the veil is lifted and what at first seemed impossible suddenly becomes anything but. So I'll take my aspirations to the very end. And what's at the very end you ask? Immortality? No. I could get that any time I wanted. I always thought it was cruel that some could build and build and never get to see the end of what they had accomplished. Bringing the dead back to life… now that's more like it."

"Are you crazy?" Sora suddenly found his strength and managed to stand up.

"But Sora, did I not bring back those children?" Xanatos asked. "Children who, if I remember correctly, were experimented on by people wielding the same weapon you are? I'm not on the wrong side of history here. I'm correcting those wrongs."

"Like hell you saved them! You've poisoned their minds!" Sora snapped angrily. "I don't care about your stupid ambitions. As long as I breathe I will never allow them to come to fruition!"

"Guess you ought to stop breathing then," Xanatos said.

The two circled around the small space they had to work with for a moment, and Sora could tell Xanatos' mind was running through just as many little calculations in his head. Sora clutched onto his daggers tightly and narrowed his eyes in concentration. The ground they were fighting on wasn't favorable to either of them, so anything sudden could happen. Even if he was winning, he couldn't let his guard down for a single second.

Sora rushed forward first. He could feel himself forsaking Neuge's teachings as he threw himself forward with each attack. With each attack seeming increasingly transparent to him, he became increasingly frustrated by using the short length weapons. As much as he wanted to use the Keyblade for this, he couldn't. Not unless he never wanted to use it again.

Sweat drops began to appear on Sora's forehead. Each strike felt like a gamble. He had to move in close to strike, but when Xanatos countered, Sora had to back away quickly, usually sacrificing one of the daggers to the seven-branched sword's hit in the process.

Sora jumped quickly and tried to strike from the side but Xanatos caught him mid-air, spun and slammed him into the ground. He went in for a stab with the sword and with no room left to maneuver, Sora had reached out and caught the edges of the sword with his hands before it could pierce his chest. Sora could feel something wet tracing around the edges of his hand but ignored it and pushed back with gritted teeth.

Hoping he was close enough, Sora raised a kick and sent it forward. The resulting sound of pain as well as the loss of pressure on the sword told him he had found a target. He rolled out of the attack and retrieved his dagger before parrying another attack with them.

As the fight drew on, Sora's options were quickly becoming limited. He could sustain one more hit with the dagger in his right hand and three in his left.

Xanatos tutted. "Sora, what's wrong? You look exhausted. And here I thought we were just getting started."

Sora let out a few heavy gasps and looked down at the dagger in his right before looking up again.

"Well? What are you waiting for? I'm right here," Xanatos continued to taunt him. Sora looked over to his left hand and flipped the dagger in his hands for a few seconds. After it landed back in his hand the fifth time, he weighed it in his open palm before enclosing his hand around it. He looked towards Xanatos and threw the dagger straight at him. Xanatos dodged easily by simply moving his head to the left but Sora wasn't done yet. He quickly summoned his Keyblade and cast the plasma claw, catching the knife before it could drop any farther in elevation. He tugged backwards and the dagger flew towards them. Xanatos' face fell glum in surprise and he just managed to step out of the way of the dagger.

Sora ran forward, banishing the Keyblade and catching the dagger before running in for another attack. Xanatos looked back just in time and paused, only for a brief second, before slamming his sword down on the crossed daggers. The blade became caught in the middle of the two daggers and Sora and Xanatos battled for dominance once more. The creases on Sora's forehead became more pronounced as he put everything into pushing back.

Their struggle ended in a draw. All three weapons flew up into the air, with one of the daggers shattering in the process. So distracted was Xanatos by this occurrence that he failed to notice Sora summoning his Keyblade to deliver and diagonal strike upwards.

"Grgh…" Xanatos grimaced and looked down to where Sora had cut him. He slowly backed away, seeming unaware that he was heading to his death. Or maybe that was his intention. In any case, Xanatos was already falling over the edge.

Sora rushed towards him and caught him by the shirt before pulling him forward to catch him.

"You… saved me. Didn't you come after me to stop me in the first place? So why…?" Xanatos asked.

Sora carefully lowered Xanatos down before sitting down himself. "I said I'd do what's necessary."

Xanatos chuckled before wincing. "So that's it, huh? That's your answer. And what's funny is that I'm still not satisfied. I never have been. None of this needed to happen. I had something with Colette. She gave me an opportunity. A chance for a new beginning. But I was in too deep. I feared having my heart stabbed again like with Fox and Alex. Colette… she deserves better than anything I could ever give her."

Sora remained silent. He looked over in the direction of the city. The city seemed almost like something out of a sci-fi futuristic utopia. Xanatos had been right. The city was beautiful.

* * *

 **A/N: And so a big thread left dangling in our heroes' lives has come to a close. Or has it? What of the surprise Xanatos mentioned he had in store for the heroes, and will Xanatos accept defeat just like that? Or will Sora come to regret his choice? Was Xion right? And what of Roxas? Yeah, you get the idea. Anyway, all those questions and more will be answered in the coming chapters that I hope to share with you soon.**


	59. Cat And Mouse

Chapter 58

Cat and Mouse

It was twenty minutes before Sora and Xanatos were rescued from the otherwise inescapable tower. During which time, Sora was forced to put up with the presence of man he didn't really want to be with any longer. Sora did listen half-heartedly to the man's ramblings however, because he imagined to not at least try would hurt more. Xanatos had talked of his own city and how he had managed to move the ruins of an old castle, brick by brick, to a new location atop a skyscraper he already owned. He talked of how he had been able to travel back in time to ensure that he would set himself on the way to becoming a self-made man, thus finally proving himself victorious over his own father.

Sora wasn't even sure by the time Xanatos had finished whether he had just been making things up on the fly to mess with him but Xanatos certainly seemed to believe his words. He decided to entertain it as truth simply on how much he had enjoyed the story alone and left it at that. He looked over to his side where the Seven-Branched Sword had landed as well as Xion's dagger. He finally had it—a weapon that might… could give him a chance to bypass Kohle's immortality, should he stand in Sora's way again.

The sound of a helicopter slowly coming closer perked Sora up. Standing up, he looked towards the other side of the bridge to see on approaching them. To those below it must have looked like an incredibly strange scene.

Sora grinned and began waving. " _HEEEEEY!"_

The helicopter soon reached them and the door slid open to reveal Celes. He smiled at her and grabbed the sword and the dagger before looking at Xanatos, motioning for him to go first. Xanatos simply smiled and did as he was told. Sora followed after, climbed into the vehicle and looked around to see everyone else there save for two.

"Where's Rhea?" Sora asked.

"We received Baymax's signal a while ago. That's how we knew you were here. Rhea went down somewhere below to search for him. As long as this is still active…" and here Hiro showed him a watch on his wrist that had a unique display. "…he's not offline. Hopefully he hasn't strayed too far off into the sea or something."

Sora sat on the seat next to her and relaxed, glad that Baymax was looking to be alright. He looked back over at Hiro and smiled.

"Well, I hope you installed a sound system on him, otherwise Rhea will be out looking all night," Sora said.

"Huh? Oh! Heh, heh, heh, yeah… no, Rhea said she had her own way of finding him," Hiro said.

"And what about the children?"

"Also in Rhea's hands. She was actually able to put them to sleep somehow! I think I'm in love…" Fred's head waved from side to side, a silly grin plastered on his face.

"Anyway… she mentioned that she, Salome and Lysander would take care of them. If they can help those poor children get better then I'm rooting for them," Honey Lemon said.

Xanatos followed this up with an annoying chuckle. "Get better? There's nothing wrong with them. Maybe you're the ones who need to be checked up on."

Wasabi threw his hands up in the air. "Does anyone have duct tape? Please. Anyone!"

"Not exactly but… Morph?" Sora called out. The amorphous pink blob appeared out of his hood. Sora inwardly remarked that the strange little alien had to be a champ to stay inside his hood through all that falling. "Shut his mouth for me, would you?"

Blob buzzed about in anticipation before leaping over and plastering itself against Xanatos' mouth. Xanatos looked toward Sora with a single eyebrow raised: " _Really?_ "

"You can do all the talking you like when we get back, for all the good it'll do you," Sora said before looking away.

* * *

 ** _The Mixing Room, The Witch's Shack_**

 ** _Kingdom of DunBroch_**

Not for the first time this week, the nasty marathon of tumultuous weather continued to barrage DunBroch. Heavy rain pelted down on the thatched roof of Shantotto's small cottage and, combined with the howling wind, served as a pretty good substitution for a lack of ocean nearby.

However, this was not a phenomena experienced by the mixing room, with its space and all its contents boxed off from the outside world. Here, magic reigned and Shantotto could decide whatever weather she bloody well wanted.

But right now the weather was the least of her concerns. Her small eyes watched as Kohle rose out from the mixing pool in the middle of the room. She hid half of her mouth behind her hand with the remaining half exposing an amused smile.

"Well? Did you find the answers you were looking for?" she asked, walking over to the pool as Kohle reached for the chair to grab his shirt.

"Why did you show me that?" Kohle asked.

"You were the one who agreed, m'dear. So tightly our chains bind us, but you? You who has lived longer than any of us, you have no fear," Shantotto said.

"When you're immortal like I am, what is there to fear? You've seen it once, you've seen it a thousand times. Actually, to be completely, I do fear, not for myself but for my loved ones. I know they'll leave me eventually, because they always do, but that's exactly why I keep doing it, keep making connections. Because it proves I still have something to fear," Kohle said.

"So because you can withstand physical injury you rely on emotional instead. And what do you believe lies at the end of this road you so willingly tread?"

"Now that I've seen what I needed to see, I don't care. It could be one that leads to gold or it could have nothing, but as long as I have this body I will seek my revenge," Kohle said.

"Against the one who gave you this curse? So you're finally putting that indestructible head of yours to good use then, for better… or worse," Shantotto said. "Either way, it should be interesting. Very interesting, indeed."

"I'm not here to indulge your fantasies, but I can't say I don't appreciate the enthusiasm. It feels like I'm everyone's enemy nowadays," Kohle said. "And if I go up against Kingdom Hearts, I'll become the world's enemy."

"It's because you push everyone away. When you push everyone away and then complain, what else do you expect me to say?"

"And yet, I'm the only one who can endure it. When it's over, whatever's left, I'll rebuild and hopefully they'll be there by my side. Rhea, and the others," Kohle said. He let his eyes close and he pictured a girl with hair so unusual that it was as green as grass. Her gentle compassionate brown eyes, though they could not see, contained a whole world in them that Kohle could be lost to.

Slowly the figure changed and another face took its place, one that he had some trouble remembering specifics before but could now picture clearly in his mind. Reddish brown hair and eyes of chocolate. Her face was somewhat paler than Rhea's with light freckles that Kohle had always teased her about but in secret had been rather fond of her. He remembered her dainty nose and a dreamy smile that always made it seem like she was anywhere but in the same place as him.

He opened his eyes again and frowned. It could not have been coincidence that he would step across what he suspected had either been Kingdom Hearts torturing him, or a descendent of hers. But if what he had seen in that pool had been right, then everything made sense. Moira had somehow survived what he had thought had been a most certain death and that girl, Luna, was-

The sound of bell rang from somewhere nearby.

Perplexed, Kohle turned to look at Shantotto. "What was that?"

"Company, and in this weather? They better have a good excuse. Come, let's see what the humdrum is about together," Shantotto said. "Though I insist. Please, do go first should things go sour if they persist."

"Wow, really? You sure you're not just scared?" Kohle challenged.

"My brain is bigger and more valuable than yours. Do the math, it's a quintessential gift that we must ensure endures," Shantotto said.

Judging from his time with her, Kohle didn't doubt this to be true but she wasn't exactly being entirely candid. She had sought him out because she knew that whatever she wanted to know rested with him. If she saw things in term of their value, then to have to rely on someone else for the first time in her life probably hadn't been easy for her to accept.

Kohle went over to the door and stepped through into the front room. When he looked back, he could see a wooden door standing on its own without any hinges or walls to support it.

The bell on the other side of the front door rang again. Kohle walked over and opened the door without hesitation to see a teenage boy standing on the other side with wavy blonde locks and clothing clearly not of this land.

"Modern fashion called, they want their clothes," Kohle commented with a stony-faced glare. "Who are you?"

"Well that's no way to treat your childhood friend," the boy answered with a smug smile.

"I may have lost some memories of the past but even I'd never forget someone as strange as you. Try again," Kohle said.

"I'd rather not. I have business to attend so if you wouldn't mind, I'd just like to get through," the boy attempted to slip past Kohle and into the shack only for Kohle to block his approach by putting his palm against the wall.

The boy sighed and shrugged. "I must let you know I'm not in the best of moods right now, something extremely irregular for a person such as myself. Please don't make this worse for yourself. I just need to see the witch."

"I don't care," Kohle said.

"Well… I suppose I haven't had a good fight in a while. You'll do to entertain me," the boy smirked. Kohle was about to summon his Keyblade when Shantotto impatiently pushed through.

"Oh, move over. Do you people know how to solve anything without resorting to violence? I tell you, quick wit with a little flair is all you need to stun one into silence," Shantotto said.

"Well if you aren't looking younger by the day, Shantotto. Did you do something with your hair? I think you did something with your hair," the boy complimented.

"Oh, you noticed. How long has it been, Joshua?" Shantotto asked.

"Oh, some thirty years or so I imagine. Your advice on transferring souls to temporary shells proved quite useful in saving my friends. Shibuya wouldn't exist as it is now without you," Joshua replied.

"Wait, wait, wait, hold up here. I'm missing something. What? Who? When? Where?" Kohle fired these questions rapidly as his mind failed to take in everything the boy had just said.

"Well, perhaps those questions would be better answered inside. As much as I enjoy the rain, I like not catching a cold even better," Joshua said.

Kohle's reluctance disappeared and curiosity took its place. He backed away and allowed Joshua in.

* * *

 ** _Castle Corona Bridge, Kingdom of Corona_**

As Sora and Celes reached the bridge of the castle, they came across Ariel, who had been staring out at the lake, still blissfully unaware that they were nearby. Sora placed a finger on his lips to Celes and tiptoed over to Ariel's spot. Before he could reach her there was a loud clearing of the throat. Ariel turned and so did Sora, although he wasn't particularly happy. Xanatos, of course, had to ruin the moment even with Morph still attached to his mouth.

"You did it!" Ariel exclaimed excitedly. Her enthusiasm was contagious and enough to make Sora forget about what had happened. "You really are something else, Sora."

"Aw, shucks. I couldn't have done it without Celes and those guys' help. Moira's Crescent too," Sora said.

"I know that's probably true, but somehow I still get the feeling you're being modest," Ariel said. She looked towards the Seven-Branched sword in his hand and asked him what he was holding. He was sure that telling her he had recovered the same sword that had destroyed Aqua's Keyblade wasn't doing him any favors in convincing her that she was overestimating his abilities.

"I have good news of my own too actually," Ariel said.

"Let me guess. Melody said her first word?" Sora asked.

"No, well I hope not because I'd want to be there to hear it. Actually, Luna and Neuge came back around noon," Ariel said. Sora's heart fluttered. He grinned at her and looked back over to Celes and Xanatos.

"I can take it from here. Go get her, tiger," Celes said, gripping Xanatos' arm more firmly than she needed to it. Xanatos grunted in response and looked at her in annoyance.

"If he causes any trouble, I give you my express permission to throw him over the bridge," Sora said. He looked over to Ariel quickly with an apologetic look. "Sorry for ruining the view."

Ariel grinned and pointed over in the direction of the castle. "Get going already."

"Okay, okay! Bye mom. Other mom," Sora said to the two before quickly leaving. The excitement that filled his chest would surely need another container or two by the time he reached her.

Through the door and past the guards he went, heading further down the hallway into the stomach of the castle. He had done it before many times but never with his mind so focused. He wanted to ask her everything and yet just being in the same room as her was enough.

As he rounded the corner, he spotted her talking with Aladdin and Kupopo. He stood still for a moment if only to admire her from the back. He hadn't truly realized how nice her shorter hair looked. Aladdin, standing in front of her, spotted Sora leaning the Seven-Branched Sword against the wall and gestured at him with his head. Luna looked over her shoulder for a moment before turning her whole body to face him.

"Well? Are you just gonna stand there and make me look like an idiot or what?" Sora asked with a silly smile on his face. Luna ran towards him and jumped into his arms. Sora pulled her in tightly and tried to express every part of the love in his heart for her into that hug.

"Never leave me again," Luna whispered with her eyes closed.

"Never crossed my mind," Sora replied. He leaned away from her shoulder and the two shared a kiss for the first time in what felt like forever.

" _Kupo…_ " Kupopo's face drooped in complete and utter dismay and Aladdin chuckled.

"Buddy, I think you need to lower your expectations… just a tad." Aladdin balanced his hand on Kupopo's head before looking back at Sora and Luna. "I can see we're not welcome here. We'll just leave you two lovebirds alone."

Luna smirked at him and stuck her tongue out. "There's always Jasmine if you're feeling lonely. As for Kupopo, Hattie basically admitted to me that she would touch anything with a pulse so I guess I'm saying there's a chance?"

"Ew, no way, kupo! I'm not _that_ desperate!" Kupopo squirmed, zipping off down the hallway. Aladdin laughed and bid a farewell to the pair again before following after the moogle.

"What a… lively bunch of friends we've made," Sora said, a look of confusion on his face.

"Well you are the company you keep so what does that say about you?" Luna challenged.

"What does it say about you?"

"I'm weird. I always knew that," Luna replied. Sora sneaked a quick kiss in before she could continue, drawing out a smile from her. "How did things go on your end?"

"Oh, there was nothing to it, really. Made friends with Moira's Crescent. Bagged Xanatos. All in a day's work. Well… three days but you get the idea."

"Oh, just that then?" a seemingly aloof Luna asked.

"Oh, you can do better? I'd like to see you do better."

"Well, Cruella De Vil was up to her old antics again but we put a stop to that before it could really begin and got the heart piece. I also got sucked into a video game alongside Sarah and Aya where the other heart piece was and now a whole Keyblade faction doesn't trust us because Horus completely wiped out their home while I was in said video game."

Sora let his hands drop to the side. "And here I thought I'd win. What's this about Horus destroying their home? Whose home?"

"Maybe we shouldn't be talking about this in a hallway. I'm sure you'll be busy with Xanatos and Neuge still wants to see you. Maybe we can go out lately to a nice restaurant nearby and have some of that lovely seafood I've been craving. Your treat!" Luna said.

"Ah, so you're making me pay for it then? If I had known it would be so expensive I wouldn't have done this whole dating thing in the first place," Sora remarked.

"And now you're trapped in my wicked web," Luna said twirling and wiggling her hand and fingers. She reached out tapped him on his nose with her index finger before backing away. "You helped Namine too, I see. It's so good to see her again. And I'm glad to know I can rest easy knowing you and Moira's Crescent aren't at each other's throats anymore."

"Well, there's still Kohle. He's gone rogue, but I guess whether I use this is up to him next time we meet." Sora glanced over towards the sword leaning against the wall.

"Did you see Astra?" Luna asked, a glimmer of hope visible in her eyes. When Sora shook his head and apologised, Luna's chest fell and she nodded her head absentmindedly. "Why are you apologizing? I was the one who got my hopes up. But then if she's not with them, where is she? Actually, whatever, that's not important right now. Go and see Neuge and I'll see you later when you go all out on our luxurious dining."

"Hey, we're eating frugally. I'm not going broke for this and I don't care if you break up with me over it," Sora said.

"Heh, heh, we'll see…" Luna winked at him before jogging off down the corridor. Sora grinned, grinned some more, and after a while realized how foolish he probably looked and was glad no one was around to see him.

* * *

It was several minutes later when the door to the audience chamber opened with a grumble and Xanatos stepped into the room with Celes guiding him in from the back. This time, Sora wasn't alone in facing him either. Sitting in his usual spot was Yen Sid looking as pensive as ever. He had warned Sora that their fight was not over just yet and that Xanatos would attempt to wiggle his way out of punishment if given the chance. Beside him was a stony-faced Neuge, hard to read though when Sora had met her after finding Luna he had been clued in that her uncharacteristic unease was probably linked to the Horus attack Luna had been talking about.

"They have a doomsday weapon. You remember the castle in Radiant Garden?" Neuge had told him when they were alone with Yen Sid.

"It's hard to forget. What about it?"

"Well, it's not so much a castle now as it is a flying fortress with a laser cannon."

Even as Xanatos approached them, Sora couldn't help but think back to that conversation. Just what exactly was going on in Radiant Garden? The obvious way to find out would be to go there but it certainly wasn't going to be easy, especially for him.

He took his eyes off Xanatos and looked elsewhere around the room. To his right were Terra, Aqua, Ventus and Lightning. By his side was Namine, ever supportive and determined to see things through. Sora had wondered if she had foreseen this as well, which means she would have known that Sora would have caught Xanatos from the start, but he chose not to ask. Once he started on that thread, there was no stopping until he unravelled the whole ball of string.

"Not even a chair? So much for hospitality," Xanatos said after Morph bounced off his mouth and into Celes' hand.

"You're not a guest. You're a criminal. If you wanted the bread and salt you should have played by the rules, but instead you opt to sow chaos in the world. But you've finally been reined in to a world where games aren't an option," Lightning said. "How do you plead?"

"What are my crimes? Of 'sowing chaos', as you put it? And where's your evidence?" Xanatos asked.

"Are you making fun of us?" Lightning spat.

"Are you making fun of me?" Xanatos replied. "And here I thought no games would be played here. Just a little question. This whole trial system that you've decided to incorporate into your little shindig… who gave you that idea? Don't get me wrong, I like it, but I can't help but be curious."

"That would be Neuge. She understood that the traditional system used by Keyblade Masters past was unfit to lead us into the next generation. Whatever creases there may be in this system of ours, those creases will iron out in time as our system is tested again and again," Yen Sid said.

" _Don't indulge him!_ " is what Sora wanted to say but he kept quiet. He may have had his disagreements with the old sorcerer in the past, but in this case he was probably better a judge than Sora who kept going back and forth in his mind whether he had made a mistake in bringing Xanatos back.

"Ah, that makes sense. I remember talking about my world to her in The Poisoned Apple, you know, the pub in Radiant Garden? Anyway, it's funny because my world has this same exact system. Not saying I floated the idea around or put subtle suggestions in her head, I mean, she was probably drunk out of her mind at that point so maybe she-"

"Get to the point," Lightning said.

"Well, I suppose I'm trying to say that if you're going to commit you can't just put one foot through the door and leave it at that. So I ask again, where's your evidence?"

"We're the evidence. Everything that's happened is because of you," Sora accused.

Xanatos glanced over at him briefly before scanning the room. "Is that so? Did I kill someone?"

"You were the one who brought back the Keyblade War!" Sora snapped.

"I did no such thing. I brought back a bunch of people, yes, which last I checked is actually the opposite of killing. Second, where was my motive to start or restart a war, especially one I have no control over? I couldn't predict that they'd want to cut each other's heads off as soon as they woke up," Xanatos said.

"You want evidence? How about the documents we found on your desk mentioning you moving shipments of parts to San Fransokyo?" Aqua asked.

"Not the only time we found strange movements with your company either. Mickey and myself found them in a warehouse in New Orleans," Neuge added.

"My company, but not me? As for the documents you found on my desk, I'm afraid a lot of those end up on my desk, some of which I don't usually read. Now if you wanted to charge me for dereliction of duty, you probably could, but unless you have something that ties me to those documents I'm afraid they could have gone through anyone's hands before arriving in my care," Xanatos said.

"Why are you trying to weasel your way out of this when you have nowhere left to run?" Sora asked.

"Because you have yet to make a compelling case. I wouldn't be arguing with you if I knew I didn't have a chance. This is simply how it works in this system you've decided to bind yourself to. You accuse me of starting a war, something that was not within my power to control. You say I delivered harmful material to other places, I'm afraid you're going to need more than word of mouth to finger me as the perp. What next? That I manipulated some of you in this room? That's less of a legal thing and more a moral one, and judging by my conversations with you in the past Sora, you've said yourself you felt like you were being manipulated by the old man over there." Xanatos nodded his head in the direction of Yen Sid, who seemed unperturbed by this revelation.

Ven seemed to stiffen for a moment before looking around the room. "Wait, so what happens now? We're not just going to let him get away, right?"

"No, of course not," Lightning said. She went for her belt and drew her Gunblade from its hilt, pointing it at Xanatos. "I'd rather end this right here and now than let this man get away for trying to mess with our heads."

"Hey, hold on now." Terra put his hand out to call for calm. "You do this and you're doing exactly what he wants. If he can't win normally then he'll drag us down to his level by proving that we can't follow our own system."

"Exactly. He wants to destroy what we've built before it can truly become something special. This is a test," Aqua agreed.

"Like hell I care about any test he has to give," Lightning spat.

Namine shook her head. "Not his test. Ours. Sora had more reason than any of us to want him dead, but he managed to look past that. If he can do it then so can we."

All eyes turned to her, Namine momentarily seemed to shrink back before instead adopting a firm stance. Admittedly, Sora had been in the state of mind where he wished he hadn't brought back Xanatos, but seeing her belief in him helped to restore confidence that he had made the right choice.

Lightning sighed and lowered her sword, eventually sliding it back into its holder. "If you were trying to convince me with the whole 'we'd be as bad as them' cliché, it didn't work just so you know. I just don't want to stain the floor of people who welcomed us into their home. Also, for future reference, I'm not Sora."

 _But you're perfectly happy to fit the 'I'm so tsundere' cliché instead_ , Sora thought with a lopsided smile of amusement.

"We have evidence, don't we? Drakken and Yzma can be our evidence," Aqua said.

"In exchange for their release I imagine? So you'll let go two criminals to catch the biggest one? In other words you would do what you accuse me of. You will have indirectly risked innocent lives by doing so. But unlike me, you would do it knowing full well the consequences of what could happen. Seems a bit extreme, don't you think?" Xanatos asked. Disgusted by the man, Sora shook his head and glanced over at Neuge and Yen Sid. Why they were even entertaining this, he didn't know. Xanatos was pulling every trick out of the book and no one seemed to want to tell him that his objections didn't matter. If it was this easy to wiggle around the new system now, there was some serious doubt as to its efficiency in the future.

"Unfortunately, he has a point. Drakken and Yzma won't give up anything if they won't benefit in some way," Aqua said.

"But that doesn't mean you'll be leaving scot-free either. You'll be in the castle dungeons until we see it fit to reconvene," Neuge said. Sora watched as Xanatos was escorted out of the audience chamber by Lightning. In the brief time that Sora could see his face as he passed by, he saw much a hint of nothing from the man. More than likely he was already planning his next move.

The doors closed and Terra was the first to voice his opinion. "I don't like this. He's making this new system look like a joke."

"And yet he has a right to defend himself, no matter how asinine his argument might be," Aqua replied. "He has a point. We do need something to pin him down. Namine, what happened to the documents?"

"Oh, well… I went in right around the time that Horus took control of Radiant Garden. When I heard someone coming up the stairs I panicked and had to hide underneath the desk. It was this kind of desk where you can go in from the back and the front is just a solid partition. Anyway, when someone came into the room, you can't begin to imagine how many times I thought 'this is it' only for it to never be 'it' at all. When he went over to the bookcase in the corner of the room, I took the risk and sneaked out. I didn't want to risk trying to grab the documents," Namine explained.

"And a good thing you didn't either. I am glad you made it out safe," Yen Sid replied.

"Well, not exactly safe. Safe isn't the right word, because I only went down two floors when I was caught by someone else. There was a hostage situation going on in the building at the time and I was brought down the ground level where the other hostages were. Leon, or Squall, was with us, but he wasn't a hostage, not in the traditional sense, but rather one to Horus' demands. They wanted him to surrender control of the town to them or they would start killing hostages. At one point, I briefly caught Squall's eye and he caught mine. I knew he made his decision right then and there."

"Do you think it was your fault that he surrendered Radiant Garden?" Neuge asked.

Namine cast her head downward. "I… don't know."

Sora reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Listen, Namine, it's not your fault. Leon just did what any leader would do for his people. He gave them a fighting chance. He realized that the path of least resistance is the one that would result in less heartache. Think about it, he was there as a child, watching as the darkness destroyed his world and took Rinoa away from him, and he couldn't do anything about it. It would be so easy to take up arms and declare war but what would that accomplish? It would just set Radiant Garden back further. He knows he's not alone, and that he has friends who'll pick up the slack for him if he's not able to. He's not conceding defeat, he's proving that Radiant Garden isn't just one person."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw smiles appear from both Yen Sid and Neuge. He dropped his hand and carried on with his point. "And I suppose we should emulate that. Not one of us is bigger than the system we've built, right? We can't let Xanatos deter us from that. It doesn't matter if the idea came from Xanatos or a fortune cookie, I believe in Neuge and her own ideals, the ones she's carried with her her whole life and only now has a chance to implement."

Neuge's eyes lit up a this and she stood, holding her arms out. "Sora, give me a hug."

"What? No! Are you drunk again?" a terrified Sora asked. He was actually legitimately afraid of this new change in his teacher.

"Aw, he's shy. Come now, Sora, we won't laugh… much," Terra said, much to the snickers of Ven and Aqua.

"That's not the problem! Gah, now I wish I'd said nothing," Sora said looking pale.

"So what do we do? The evidence is in Radiant Garden and with it being under Horus' control, we can't get it. That really only leaves Drakken and Yzma, and if they were tight-lipped before, I can't see them changing their tune now," Aqua said.

"Hmm, maybe give me a shot? I might have an idea," Celes said.

"You think you can pull something off?"

"Well, I don't know yet. I only saw it in a crime procedural drama that I watched but it's not like we have any other option," Celes replied.

"Question. If this plan didn't work out like you intended it to then what next? Do we just forsake the rules and convict Xanatos anyway?" Terra asked.

"Terra…"

"No, it's an important question, Aqua, because it defines who we're going to be. Can we look back at our history, say, thirty years from now and say we were proud of how it began? Now look at it this way— if we do follow those rules, there is no evidence and Xanatos gets away, can we be proud that we stuck to our moral compass even at the expense of failing to land the biggest fish in the lake? Something tells me you wouldn't be happy."

"Well, of course not, but I'm not sure I understand your point. Are you saying we should ignore our system?" Aqua asked.

"I'm saying that we're spending too much time focusing on rules. Rules exist to stop good men from going too far, but we don't have that problem. We know we're good people and Xanatos' arguments could very well be used against him, that letting him go would be a risk to the people we're trying to protect. What we need is flexibility. If we can't judge everything on a case by case basis then people like Xanatos will constantly take advantage of that system time and time again. We have to be partial, yes, but not so much that thoughts and feelings have no place either. We shouldn't be afraid to let our greatest strengths affect how we operate."

"He's right," Ven agreed with a nod of his head. When all eyes turned to him, he stood up straight and looked around. "I mean, he _is_ right, isn't he? Like it or not, our past is a part of who we are. I know we're trying to get away from the old ways of doing things to find something that matches a united world, but that doesn't mean we have to completely abandon everything. We let the past die and we're doomed to repeat it."

"I agree, but I think we should play along anyway," Celes said.

"And why is that?" Neuge asked.

"I feel like the best way of defeating Xanatos, and I mean a complete and utter defeat, is to shatter his confidence. Make him think he can come out on top, then the drag the carpet from under him before he can even realize what's happening. We play by his rules, but we show that we can play the game better than he can. A complete victory."

"Well lookey here at our up and coming military tactician. If it means seeing a look of utter defeat on Xanatos' face, then I can't complain," Ven said.

"I'd take a Commander Chere over a Commander Farron. Maybe I shouldn't say that," Terra said.

"Oh, stop, you're embarrassing me. Of course I could never take Lightning's place. She has a wisdom and inner strength that I could never hope to capture," Celes said. "So is everyone else fine with trusting in me?"

"I don't believe there are any objections. I will not place such heavy expectations by telling you that we are counting on you but if your heart is in the right place, it's hard to believe that your efforts will be entirely fruitless," Yen Sid said. "And Sora?"

"Hm?"

"You should know that Helen has seen fit to return to Metroville with Enna Kros to retrieve a very special person who she believes can be of aid to us in the battle to come. Our guest should be arriving shortly."

"Cool, though I can't think of who that could be other than her fami…" Sora trailed off as, by what he was sure was complete coincidence, the door opened and Enna Kros, positively glowing, stepped in with Helen behind her and one other person. A woman of short stature with a pageboy haircut strutted into the room, pushing past both Enna and Helen and taking a look around.

"What, not even a welcoming party? No balloons, no nothing, you upset me, darling!" she exclaimed, looking back at Helen.

"Well, we could hardly do that when we barely had enough time to prepare," Helen replied.

"Excuses! You either love me or you don't, darling! Now, which is it?"

"L-love you? I mean, o-of course I love you, Edna, but-"

"Then you know what needs doing. Chop-chop now, we don't have all day!" Edna yelled.

Helen looked back and forth between her and the others. "Uh, well I don't really-"

"I'm just kidding, darling! You know, you really take these things too seriously," Edna said. Sora was suddenly reminded of Shantotto for some reason, except for the incessant rhyming and strange laugh. She looked over at Yen Sid and placed a hand on her hip. "You run this place? Helen, my dear, I sympathize. Really, if you had told me the people I'd be working for were wearing bathrobes for work, I'd have come sooner."

"Heh, I like her," Sora whispered to Namine, who stifled a laugh with a clearing of the throat.

* * *

Meanwhile, closer to the entrance of the castle, guards turned their heads in the direction of Lightning and Xanatos as they made their way towards the dungeons. Lightning tried her best to ignore their expressions and instead pushed Xanatos forcefully along whenever he began moving too slow, which turned out to be frequently.

"Wow, are you a general or a bouncer? You've sure got a firm push, lady," Xanatos said.

"Please, make my day. I encourage you," Lightning spat.

"I mean, you seem like a rational person. Tell me something. Do you believe that what I face now is a proper conduct of justice?" Xanatos asked.

Justice. Lightning had very much come to dread the word, or perhaps even despise it, ever since her conversation with Janus. That man could take the lightest of words and turn them heavy and dripping with black malice. Her immediate thought was to not respond to Xanatos' question, if even only because she wasn't truly sure of the answer herself. It was true she should stand by her allegiances and help to protect the others' vision of a new world order but her heart couldn't help but wonder why. Why was it that those who suffered did so quickly under unjust hands while those who caused the suffering were met with the slow and overly meticulous process of the lawful. Did Serah deserve to suffer the way that she did? Were she to come in contact with those who had taken her life, Lightning would not hesitate to cut them down again and again. For all the pain he had caused, why did Xanatos deserve any different?

" _Does that sound like justice to you? How will your justice be seen by others?_ " Janus' voice continued to echo in her head again and again. " _Do you have the guts to do what others are unwilling to do?_ "

Down the stairs they went until they reached the dungeons. She walked Xanatos over to the first cell and closed the door after pushing him in, nodding at the guard to seal the cell with his jail key.

On her way back up, Lightning happened to come across Elsa who seemed to be looking for something.

"Is something wrong, your majesty?" Lightning asked. From the little she knew about the queen from overhearing conversations, she too had had a particularly troubled life, especially when it came to her sister. Lightning had wanted to ask her a few things of her own but doing so would require her to open up about her feelings to others which was harder for her than one might expect.

"I heard from Luna that Xanatos is here. Is it true?" Elsa asked.

"It is. He's in the dungeons at the moment."

Elsa let out a relieved smile and closed her eyes. "Then perhaps I can finally close another chapter in a past that I'm not quite proud of. So what happens next?"

Lightning's eyes wandered off to the light that poured through the windows. How could she tell her that it wouldn't be so easy and that Xanatos was playing them for fools, possibly even stalling for time so he could think of a way to get out of the situation? If they wanted a stress test of the new system, fine, but from what she had heard, Xanatos was not the one to try it with.

"Something's wrong, isn't it?" Elsa asked after a few seconds of analyzing Lightning's face.

"No, why would something be wrong? Listen, it's going to be okay so just hang in there," Lightning encouraged. She tried to leave without a further word and would have turned the corner were it not for Elsa's rebuttal.

"You're not very good at hiding how you really feel, are you? I know because I'm the same."

Lightning froze in her tracks and was about to look behind her but at the last moment thought better of it. She continued on her way.

* * *

 **A/N: So next chapter will see the return of old faces as Sora ventures off to find his best friends in preparation for the assault on Radiant Garden and Horus. There'll also be a little bit of insight into what you can expect from Kairi's story when we get to it so look forward that soon!**


	60. The Dead Village

Chapter 59

The Dead Village

"So this is the boy who Helen told me about. It's hard to believe you're not a superhero if what she say is true."

Sora wasn't a nail biter but with Edna Mode around him, he felt like he was constantly being scrutinized under her analytical gaze. Sora felt he could only stand there and mouth incoherent sentences as if he were trying to decide what to say while Edna circled around like a curious shark trying to confirm its suspicions.

"You'll do," she confirmed with a nod of her head.

"I'll do…?"

"My new guinea pig, of course. You should be happy, darling, you get to be the first to test out my new gadgets. I'm more of a fashion designer, mind you, but I've dabbled in tech. I've never made something that wasn't for supers before so this should prove exciting," Edna said. "I suppose anything flame proof, shock proof, pressure proof or otherwise is out of the question."

"That goes without saying. So you made Helen and her family's costumes, right?" Sora asked.

"No, darling, it was tooth fairy. Of course I made them!" Edna snapped.

"Right, so I was thinking maybe we could have a cloak that can turn invisible or capes that absorb magic or-"

"NO CAPES!" Edna leaned so far in that Sora began to question whether it was possible of someone of her height.

"Somehow I just knew you'd say that," Sora said with an awkward toothy grin before sliding out of the way.

"Seriously, they haven't given me much space to work with here. I much prefer my own place," Edna said as she began pacing back and forth.

"Well, I might know of a place where you can work—the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology. There's a kid there, only fourteen but he's a total genius! As far as I know, he studies robotics. He built me a pair of magnetic strips that allowed me to stay on his robot's back," Sora said. For some reason he felt the eager need to impress Edna.

"Oho, now this… I have to see." Edna glanced at him from the side of her glasses before walking off. "Because I tell you, darling, it's so lonely sometimes being the most intelligent one in the room. When all these ideas are contained in your head for fifteen years you need somewhat of an intellectual release so imagine when Bob came to my home and told me that he needed a new suit. Well, I was just positively glowing! And then Helen tells me an entire organization needs my work? Just make a motion picture on me already, darling!"

"Mmhm, I bet the big studio deals are already coming in by the droves," Sora said somewhat wryly. He imagined that if she were anything like Shantotto, it would be appealing to her ego that would keep her off his case.

Edna proceeded to move on to discussing her ideas for what she had in mind for Sora, an incredibly insightful but also frustrating process given that Sora could really only nod and shake his head at the things he liked and disliked. One of the designs he found most interesting were modifying his boots to store momentum and then being able to release that energy through a burst of speed or a high jump.

"Furthermore, in order to keep the soles cooled when building up momentum, I'll need an adequate insulator, though if your boy genius is who you say he is, that won't be a problem," Edna said.

"Just don't put too much pressure on him. He still needs to study," Sora said.

"Working with me is the greatest experience one could have! Don't just learn—experience! Don't just look—observe!" Edna exclaimed as if lost in her own little world. She turned back to Sora and smiled. "And who knows, if we finish on time we can get started on modifying those gloves of yours, hmm?"

"If you could," Sora replied. Before the boots, she had also suggested gloves that could reduce friction all the while maintaining grip. That was the thing with Edna. She could turn a simple piece of cloth into something more from a mere glance.

There was a knock on the door. When Sora told them they could come in, the door opened and Namine popped her head in before bringing her entire body in.

"Are you having fun?" Namine asked.

"Well, if you must know, I am. Edna has some pretty cool designs going on that can protect the others when we take on Horus," Sora said.

"Good to hear. So, I was wondering if you could come with me on a bit of a trip?"

"A trip? I mean, sure thing, but where are we going?" Sora asked.

"Eden or, more specifically, Yeul's home."

Sora's face was a mixture of emotions when he finally dawned on him what Namine had just said. A chance to understand Yeul better as well as the history of the seers… that, and it also seemed like Namine had something else to show him. Considering she had been all over the place on her own since the two had last met, Sora was pretty sure it was beneficial to him somehow.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go! Go!" Edna shooed him and Namine out of the room. They turned back as they heard her muffled voice behind the door. "Oh, do bring me back a present, darling. Maybe a necklace or something."

"It's not that kind of trip!" Sora yelled before leaving with Namine. Getting to Eden was easy—they could just ask Enna Kros to handle that matter. Sora was more concerned with how long it was going to take. He had promised Luna that he would take her to eat later on in the evening.

"Don't worry, it shouldn't take that long. I'll get you home right in time for your date," Namine cooed.

"Ugh, don't say it like that. Sounds like I'm being babied, and it's especially weird hearing it from you," Sora said.

They found Enna Kros waiting for them at the bridge transfixed by the lake's beauty, at least that's the way Sora saw it seeing as he had found her doing the same before. Actually, now that he thought about it, she hadn't been the only one either.

"Ready to go?" Enna asked with a huge beam on her face.

"We're ready," Namine told her. The process was really as simple as blinking his eyes. Not for the first time, Sora felt the overwhelming sensation of expecting to be in one place but finding himself in another.

Inches of snow lay on the ground, and inches more seemed to come as Sora stepped foot in Eden. Sora looked around at the thick blanket of white around him before turning to Namine and Enna.

"Well this is different."

"Climates tend to become more spontaneous the farther you go from the centre of the realm of light. We're somewhere near the edge of the realm of light but not quite outside of it like Twilight Town is. Perhaps it's best if you see the realm of light as a ring of light that holds a certain amount of territory instead," Enna Kros explained.

"So it can be summer over in Corona but winter over here? I see, I see," Sora said.

"Well, not necessarily. It's just more unstable. So while it is snowing now, that doesn't necessarily mean it's winter. It could be incredibly hot tomorrow for all we know."

Sora looked over to Namine and noticed she was rubbing her arms while looking about uncomfortably. He smiled and took off his jacket, placing over her shoulders.

"Sora, I-"

"You need it more than me," Sora assured her. "Anyway, which way are we headed in?"

They set their sights toward the south of their locations, although Sora could not see much in this thicket of snow. Every now and then there was a bluster of wind that would send Sora shivering although he tried not to make it too obvious for Namine's sake.

As they reached the exit of the forest at last, they came across a fairly nostalgic sight. For the first time in months, Sora watched as a Shadow stumbled about strangely through the snow.

"Heartless? I thought they'd gone extinct," Sora said.

"It's true that they were rewired to see their own kind as a threat, but you can hardly expect that to cause a complete extinction. The less of them there are to devour, the longer it takes for them to seek each other out. At any rate, I imagine the artificial Heartless made by Xehanort are all gone now, and most of the pure Heartless have been eradicated from the realm of light. You can get rid of it if you want, but the lonelier they are, the cuter, don't you think?" Enna asked.

"No," Sora replied, summoning his Keyblade.

"Wow, so easily too!" Enna said with a look of shock. Sora walked over to the Shadow and disposed of the Shadow quickly. Enna pouted. "Aw… I wanted to keep him as a pet."

"I'm pretty sure I just did it a favor then," Sora said.

When they emerged out of the forest, Sora could just barely make out what seemed like a little settlement in the distance separated from them only by a winding path leading down the mountain pass.

"I'd hoped to take you here when it wasn't snowing. Yeul used to play in this poppy field, right over there." Namine pointed in the direction of the river. "It's a beautiful sea of red. So serene..."

"Maybe we can come here again when we get Yeul back. I'm sure she'd love to come here again," Sora said.

"Get Yeul back? What do you mean by that?" Enna asked. As they kept walking, Sora explained to her the secret mission he and Luna were doing by repairing Kingdom Hearts piece by piece as well as Kingdom Hearts' promise to return Yeul to them if they succeeded.

"Sora, I'm not sure I should shatter your optimism but that sounds like blackmail to me. 'Do this or else you will never see Yeul again'. If it can promise that, and it can actually be done, then it has the power to return her to you but is choosing not to," Enna said.

"Or it needs the rest of its power back to do that," Sora countered. "Look, I know what you're getting at, and it's not like I haven't thought of it either. I know there's a possibility that Kingdom Hearts could renege on its deal. I know that! But I can't afford to think that way. I have to believe because Yeul believes. And if Kingdom Hearts won't give her back then I…"

He stopped himself and smiled ironically, shaking his head. "Let's just keep moving."

Before a preoccupied Sora knew it, they had somehow made it down the mountain and had entered the town. Like setting foot on a film set, Sora was exposed to a completely different world of wooden housing. In the seer's time, Sora could imagine it was a quiet and peaceful town, isolated from others due to not wanting to get involved with the affairs of refugees heavily involved in a war.

The town itself consisted of one long main street with side roads branching out leading to accommodation. Among those, Sora was sure, was where Yeul and her family had once lived. The main road itself seemed to host only shops, at least leading toward the middle of the town square where a stone memorial seemed to await them.

"This language…" Sora said, tracing his fingers across the indentations on the stone. "I can't read it."

"It's Atlantean. Because the seers come from Atlantis, they wanted to preserve at least a part of their culture so that it might live on," Namine said.

"I see… I guess we'd need Kida or someone else from Atlantis to decipher this then," Sora said.

"There's no need. I can translate it."

As he turned to see Kairi, Sora thought he must have been dreaming. Not having seen her in months, Sora crouched low and put his hands on his head, blowing a puff of air in to the open.

"I am gonna have a heart attack one of these days from doing this, I just know it," he said.

"Well good luck with that but I don't plan to let you get off that easy," Kairi said. She was wearing a short pink and black jacket stopping just short of her midriff, with a white blouse underneath. Her shorts were the same color to her jacket and there was only some skin visible before being covered by high knee suede boots.

"As I expect. You said you'd have my back," Sora said with a smile. Kairi held out her hand as she neared and Sora took it, letting her pull him up and into a hug.

"I've missed you so much," Kairi said.

"Me too. I miss me too I mean," Sora replied. Kairi chuckled and punched Sora lightly on the shoulder.

"Well, if you were missing something, it doesn't seem to have been your sense of humor," Kairi said.

"You've been by yourself this whole time?" Sora asked.

"Of course not. Two heads are better than one. I've had Freya with me. She has my back," Kairi said.

"Freya? Wait, the assassin? The one who tried to kill you? Kairi, I-"

"It's okay! It's okay. She's regretful of her actions, of the past she's lived. It's true there was a lack of trust at the start but with understanding that changed over time… and we became stronger for it," Kairi said.

Enna leaned her head to the side and smiled sweetly. "There's something beautiful about people who are willing to make the effort to change for others, don't you think? Like being reborn!"

"Yeah, I know a thing or two about that," Kairi said, looking over at the monument. "Which is why I can read Atlantean. Some past version of me, I guess. 'The day the world cried tears of blood, such as they became stars in the sky. Curse their name and remember death'."

"Their? By which they mean those who took advantage of them…" Sora said. "Anyway, why are you here, Kairi? I find it a pretty strange coincidence we would run into you like this all of a sudden."

"Because it isn't. I met with Kairi not too long ago and arranged for you two to meet here today," Namine said.

"She's a conniving little one, isn't she? Almost hard to believe she came from me," Kairi said. For a brief moment, Kairi's pride in Namine made him think of Roxas whose relationship with his former other half was a lot more strained.

"She's like our very own Sandy- I mean Santa Claus, spreading joy wherever she may appear," Sora said.

"Aw, I appreciate the kind words. I'm just trying to help out as much as I can," Namine said. She looked towards Kairi. "Should we show him the thing?"

Kairi nodded and looked at the road continuing on past the town square. "Freya's waiting for us up ahead. If you've wanted to know what I've been up to these past few months, just hang on a teeny bit more."

* * *

 ** _Corona Castle Dormitories, Kingdom of Corona_**

Celes braced herself for what she was about to do before turning the doorknob and stepping into the room. The room she was in had been completely stripped of its objects, with only the curtain drapes and a desk in the middle of the room where her target sat in one of two seats.

She took her own seat and began drumming her fingers against the table while looking at Drakken.

"Enjoying yourself?" she asked. "I certainly am, because we're winning. We've shown that there's no place for criminals like you in this world."

"You naïve little girl. There's always a place for people like me in this world. As long as you need to be doing your jobs, running about with your tail between your legs, so too will you need people like me to make the messes that you'll clean up. Isn't that how it works?" Drakken asked.

"No, it really isn't. Old problems go away, and new ones may take their place, but if they stop coming altogether that wouldn't be a problem either. We'll have secured a future where no one after us has to fight," Celes said.

"You'll be waiting a while," Drakken said with a chuckle.

"But what I do know," Celes continued, looking down at her hands. "Is that we have bigger fish to fry. I won't mince words, I'd like to make you an offer. Your freedom for Xanatos'."

"And just what would this offer entail?"

"Nothing much, really. It just requires you to testify against Xanatos. If you do so we'll look the other way and excuse you of your crimes. The way I see it, there's absolutely no benefit to concealing something about Xanatos now, especially when we've already caught him."

Drakken screwed up his eyes sceptically. "Mmm, I'm not buying it. What's the catch?"

"Well, I should mention that it's a one-time only offer and it's something that I can only offer to one of you," Celes said. At Drakken's grim look, she smiled. "You're catching on, I see. Well, I did just come from Yzma offering the same deal I did to you. I imagine staying in this place isn't too good for her complexion. She does care about these things after all. So let me simplify this for you—you give us what we want to know and you go free while Yzma stays. If she gives us what we want to know then she goes and you stay. If you both decide to talk, you'll being staying double the time than what we had intended for you to stay and if neither of you talk, you'll serve the same amount of time you originally would have."

"How am I supposed to stop her from talking?" Drakken asked.

"Well, I don't need your answers immediately. You'll be back in your cells tonight. You figure out a way if you want to leave so badly," Celes said, standing up. As she turned to leave, Drakken called out to her.

"Wait. I can tell you what you want to know. I was just about getting bored of this place anyway," Drakken said. Celes looked back at him, her lips curling upwards briefly before starting towards the door.

"Guess I should tell Yzma the offer has rescinded. I'll be back in a moment," Celes said. She closed the door behind her and let out a sigh of relief before looking at Neuge. "He's agreed to help us. It looks like KRONOS' loyalties aren't as solid as we feared."

"Makes sense. With groups like that, it really is every man for himself. That they've stuck together so far has nothing to do with loyalty, but opportunity," Neuge said. "You did great Celes."

"Thanks. I imagine he's getting quite desperate right now, possibly thinking that I've gone to check up on Yzma. That will make him want to talk even more," Celes said.

"Then I'll leave the rest to you. Luna wants me to come with her and Sora for dinner. Supposedly Sora's paying so I can only surmise she wants to bankrupt the poor boy. I'll have to pay for my share at least," Neuge said. "It was nice of them to invite me though. I haven't really had time to relax with them in, well, that's the thing... I've never really went out of my way to make time for them other than training."

"It seems they really want to spend time with you too. You need to take some time off every now and then. The world can wait but people? They come and go," Celes advised.

A smile escaped Neuge's lips. "You have no idea how much I've come to understand that over the past few days."

* * *

 ** _The Sage's Library, Eden_**

The library at the end of the main road seemed more like a temple from the outside than an actual library. It was easily the biggest building in the town, which made sense given its importance.

Sora looked up at the large wooden gates as he approached them, which were protected by two statues.

"The town's guardians, Orunmila, the orisha, and Metis, the oceanid," Namine explained, watching Sora closely. "They're both deities of wisdom, and whom the people in this village worshipped."

"Of wisdom, you say? I think Sora's glad he wasn't born here," Kairi said.

"You know me so well," Sora replied in a monotone voice. "So unless I'm wrong, and stop me if I am, you've been doing something related to these sages this whole time?"

Kairi nodded and began up the steps of the temple as she spoke. "Eden served another purpose, other than simply sheltering the fatigued Seers. Its elders, known as Maesters, had also been researching into the truths that lay behind the first generation of humanity. The elders, who desired knowledge more than anything else, believed that it was their right to be privy to the secrets of humanity."

Namine continued for her. "Right. It was said that Kingdom Hearts itself was the very protector of those secrets and it was left behind by those who came before to act as judge and jury for humanity—to see if future generations were worthy of that knowledge. To that end, the elders worked tirelessly to become something greater. They wanted to transcend humanity and they saw the Seers, who had received some of Kingdom Hearts' power, as the key to doing so."

"Does that mean you've become one of those keys, Namine? Assuming the Seers are actually the key," Sora said.

"Maybe, but even if they weren't, that doesn't matter. What matters is that elders believed that they were the key, and that's all it took for them to conduct gross experiments on some of the Seers in secret. To prevent suspicions from arising among the other Seers, they would probably only abduct one or two of them and then claim that they had gotten lost in the mountains or some other excuse like that."

"So then what happened? They couldn't have succeeded, right?" Enna asked.

"No, because that's when Maleficent attacked the village. The Seers perished never knowing the truth of the people who had so warmly accepted them, and only one survived. As for the elders, they also paid for their transgressions, or so you would think."

Sora stopped with one foot two steps higher than the other. "Did Maleficent spare them?"

It was Kairi who answered. "Worse. Compelled by their desire to seek the secrets Kingdom Hearts possessed, they gave their hearts to the darkness. In darkness, they can live free, unfettered by time or the limitations of the body. You've seen what Xehanort's Heartless was like. But unlike him, they don't go around plotting schemes. They use the darkness to meditate, for however long it takes to find the answers that will lead them to become something greater."

"So that's what you're doing… you're trying to stop them," Sora realized.

"There are tombs scattered around the world, ones which were constructed by the people who made the Princesses of Heart. The elders lie behind those doors and I can't be sure yet how they managed to find them, but I won't let them have what they want. Some secrets are just best kept out of the wrong hands."

"Commendable. While we've been busy with the enemies we can see above ground, you've been fighting the enemies we can't see below it," Enna said.

"Well, is there any way I can help?" Sora asked.

"Stopping innocent people from being hurt by another Keyblade War is good enough, Sora. I'm almost done on my end anyway," Kairi said. They had reached the top of the steps and Sora turned around to look upon a town covered in snow.

"Still, I wish I could help, you know? I'm just worried. Maybe we can get someone from Moira's Crescent to help you. Another Keyblade helping you wouldn't hurt," he suggested.

"You're friends with them now? Oh, I'm so happy for you, Sora, but really, it's fine. Freya and I are more than capable of handling anything that comes our way," Kairi said. "Don't worry, you'll be seeing more of me for a while. I'll be helping with taking back Radiant Garden after all."

Sora smiled, glad to know that at least some of weight of protecting his friends wasn't to be shared only by him. Not to devalue the actions of the others, but they were going up against a whole legion of Keyblade wielders and the more they had of their own the safer they would be. With Aqua, Ven and Terra also supporting them and possibly Xion if she returned on time, that left only Riku unaccounted for.

The group entered the library to a room full of thick books and scrolls which had not been touched in years. On Sora's left, he saw the rat assassin, Freya, with her feet rested on one of the tables and her body relaxed, and a strange leather bound book burying her face.

"Enjoying yourself, Freya?" Kairi called. Freya jolted upright and almost fell out of her chair. The book flew up into the air and she quickly scrambled to catch it. Kairi giggled and walked over to her. "I always knew I'd catch you with your tail up one day, so to speak."

"Think what you must. You dragged me out into the cold and I will naturally take to warmth," Freya said, tripping her hat downward to cover her eyes.

"Aw, don't take it like that! I was just joking around," Kairi said. "Well… Freya, you already know Namine so meet Sora and Enna."

"Sora… though we have barely talked, I feel I know you quite well. Kairi talks a great deal of you. It is clear to me that you hold a very special place in her heart," Freya began.

Sora scratched at his cheek with a finger. "Um… that's good to know… I guess?"

Freya continued, "I also owe you an apology. In the past, I was a person who I very much hated. I thought I owed everything to my benefactor, Ratigan. I was willing to do anything to pay back a debt I thought worth a lifetime, but I was wrong. My debt has ended, and now I am compelled to make up for a lifetime's worth of misdeeds by protecting that which I tried to take away. I just want you to know that I am prepared to give my life for Kairi, if necessary."

Kairi stepped in. "Freya, that's-"

"Haha, yeah, that's a bit too much. She'd want you to live for yourself most importantly. No one wants to feel like they've hoodwinked another person into sacrificing themselves for them," Sora said. "But thanks. I trust you. Also, I don't know if Kairi has brought this up to you but… has anyone ever told you the way you talk is really funny?"

"THANK YOU! Seriously, even he agrees with me!" Kairi hailed.

"And I wish you would stop. You have no qualms in making me very conscious of the fact." Freya looked away exasperatedly.

"See, she's a riot," Kairi said, leaning towards Sora before leaning back. "We've been here the past few days doing some research on these elders, hoping that something around here might give us some sort of clue as to where the remaining tombs are. We've found five so far and each of them is related to a Princess of Heart so we have two to go."

"Seven, huh? I am starting to hate that number," Sora said.

"You're starting to? How do you think I feel? Anyway, I'm not exactly in the mood to read right now. Wanna tell me what you've been up to? How's Luna doing?" Kairi asked, sitting down at the table by Freya's side. Sora joined her at the table and regaled his journey starting from the moment Kohle had entered the hotel in Radiant Garden, resulting in he and Luna being stranded on the Destiny Islands.

* * *

 ** _The Capital City, Kingdom of Corona_**

The large crowd gathered on the street, clapping their hands about jovially and bobbing their heads from side to side as Rapunzel and Snow White danced along with one another to the minstrel's music. Luna, lucky enough to be at the front of the crowd, grinned and clapped along as well. Snow White and Rapunzel linked arms and began bouncing about, bending their knees and kicking up high to the rhythm of the music.

"Wow! I don't know which one I'm in love with more! Rapunzel's our princess but Snow White's positively glowing and there's this innocent charm about her," Luna overheard one man say next to her.

"Yeah, but maybe she's too innocent? I don't know. I'm sticking with my future queen," said another man. Luna rolled her eyes and tried her best to drown the conversation out, focusing instead on the two girls dancing and the positive energy that came from it. Little did they crowd know that their princess was preparing for the fight that would either guarantee their futures, or condemn them to oblivion.

The energetic song came to an end and Rapunzel and Snow White curtsied to the applauding crowd. Luna waited for them to scatter before stepping up to them with a beam on her face.

"You were both fantastic! You must have been practicing that to be so in sync, right?" she asked.

"Actually, no. It was really a spur of the moment, but I quite enjoyed it," Snow White said. "I think it's because we share a love of dancing that it came out as well as it did, don't you think so, Rapunzel?"

"Exactly. You should have joined us, Lu," Rapunzel said. She and the other girls had given her that nickname the night before she had left to find the heart pieces with Neuge and Eleftheria (whom they nicknamed 'Theria').

"No, I couldn't. I'm not too good with crowds. I mean, I did study ballet at one point but I've never performed in front of others. When they asked me to, I would always call in and say I was sick," Luna answered truthfully.

"Well, maybe you should give it a go? You never know, you might enjoy it. It might even be your life calling," Rapunzel encouraged.

"I know exactly where my life calling is _not_ and performing in front of crowd's is definitely on that list."

"Hmm, so fifteenth on that list maybe?" Rapunzel asked with an innocent smile.

"No. No, more like second on that list next to sky diving," Luna replied.

"Ah, so there's still a chance? Did you hear that, Snow? It's only second!" Rapunzel declared, throwing her arms into the air in victory.

"I said no such thing, okay? But get all the other girls in it and I might just consider. Less chance of people seeing me then," Luna said.

"Oh, that won't do! Singing and dancing are all about expressing your feelings and conveying the world to others as you see it. Once you find your rhythm, it won't matter what others think. You'll be too lost in your own little world to pay attention to what's around you," Snow White said.

"Maybe. I've never really danced with something in mind, at least not something of my own," Luna said.

"We'll have to work on it then, won't we? There must have been a lot of things you've seen on your adventures that you can make use of," Rapunzel said. Luna was starting to lean more comfortably to the idea thanks to Snow White and Rapunzel's support, but she also sure that the moment she left them, the fear would come crawling back.

"Rapunzel!"

The three of them looked down the street to see her partner, Eugene, running up to them. He stopped short of them and caught his breath before holding his hand out to them to show them a strange black stone.

"I brought it as you asked. Just so you know, it wasn't easy to find either. Almost got mauled by a bear just trying to grab it," Eugene said.

"Thanks, Eugene. I knew you could do it," Rapunzel said.

Eugene threw a jaded look at Luna and Snow. "It's like she didn't even hear me."

He looked back to Rapunzel as she reached out for the stone and withheld it from her grasp. "Look, I know you don't want to just sit around, but surely there's another way? Your parents would kill me if they found out I did this and let's be honest here, this handsome mug still has a few years of life left in it. No need to shorten it, right?"

"Oh, Eugene, you worry too much. I've thought about it long and hard and I still haven't changed my mind. As I am now, there's very little I can do to help," Rapunzel said.

"Did something happen between the two of you?" Snow White asked for both her and Luna.

"Luna, Snow, please talk Rapunzel out of this. See, it all started when she was walking through the woods one day-"

"I came across this very same stone and I touched it. You wouldn't believe what happened! A long strand of blonde hair grew back on me. I was so scared by what had happened that I dropped the stone and ran back the castle as quickly as I could. Fortunately, no one really saw me on my way back and it was dark so unless they had been looking closely, they wouldn't have seen it anyway. I couldn't talk to my parents about it for obvious reasons so I went straight to my room where my handmaiden, Cassandra, was waiting for me. She tried cutting it off but when I had woken up the next day, it had grown back. I have to keep cutting it at the root every day but tell me something—is that really a way to live?"

Rapunzel's question was easy for Luna to answer. "It isn't. Having to hide something as big as that is going to drive you crazy sooner or later."

"I'll go with sooner. Something is calling me. I don't quite know what it is, but I haven't been wrong with my gut feeling yet. I just know that my calling is elsewhere at the moment. You gave me the first sign when I met you and Sora, and this stone? It has to be another. My calling isn't over yet. I just know it!"

"Well, the way I see it, it's not my place to tell her what she can and can't do," Luna said to Eugene before looking at Rapunzel. "I don't think it's a coincidence that you came across that stone. Maybe it's who you're truly meant to be. Do what you think is right, Rapunzel, and I'll support you the entire way."

"Me too. Whatever you decide, it needs to be something you're happy about," Snow White said.

"Why do I feel like I'm the bad guy all of a sudden?" Eugene asked, running his fingers through his hair.

"Well, you should be supporting your girlfriend in her endeavours. I know it's not easy, but when life gives us lemons, we make lemonade. Whether she'll regret it later or not remains to be seen, but for the moment I'd say she'd regret not taking this chance," Luna said.

"Flynn. Eugene. I was locked up in a tower for sixteen years. Give me the chance to find myself, as you had the chance to," Rapunzel said.

Flynn gave a lopsided smile and look to the ground. "You say that but I still don't really know who I am. I figure with you though, I might find out. I don't have to give you a chance. It was never mine to give."

Rapunzel's eyes lit up as Flynn held out the stone to her. Artemis' form materialized next to Luna and she reached out, her hand gliding just above the stone.

"Luna, this power is a lot like the sensation I've felt from the pieces of heart. I think this power comes from Kingdom Hearts," she said.

Luna turned away so as not to look as if she were talking to thin air and whispered, "So is it a piece of heart then?"

"I don't think so. Probably a crystallized quartz stone with energy from Kingdom Hearts, like the ones in Quartz Town and Gravity Falls," Artemis replied.

Luna nodded and turned back round expecting to look at Rapunzel and Flynn hugging but instead her attention was drawn to Neuge who was headed down another street.

"I'll be back in a moment," Luna excused herself from Snow, Rapunzel and Eugene and strode over in the direction of the marketplace. Her pace slowed down when she saw the number of people on the street, walking about and obscuring her view. She tried tiptoeing but quickly gave up then began sauntering forward, throwing casual glances here and there in hopes of finding Neuge.

Some ways in, a hand suddenly grabbed her shoulder causing her to jump and spin around.

"Oh dear… Neuge! That isn't funny!" Luna cried as Neuge began laughing.

"It was to me. I should do it more often. Toughen you up a bit," Neuge said.

"Careful there. You're one step away from saying 'kids these days are way too soft'," Luna said.

"Well, it was certainly the case with my mother. I admit, I had some pretty brittle bones as a kid. If I scraped my knee or even fractured my ankle or arm in any way she would basically tell me to quit being a wimp and walk it off," Neuge said.

"Nice mother…" Luna mumbled.

"I won't say I had a particularly good relationship with my parents, but looking back on things, I see they had my best interests at heart. Doesn't mean I have to follow in their footsteps, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt for trying to rein me in," Neuge said.

"It didn't work, did it?"

"Nope," Neuge said.

"I figured. Astra was the same. An absolute hellraiser. She always said what she wanted to say and she never let anyone tell her what to do. She was who I spoke through for a while," Luna said.

"And now you've found your own voice. I think the Keyblade saved you," Neuge said.

Luna smiled. "I think it did too. And a bit of amnesia on the side helps too apparently."

Their conversation took them to the front of the town and the curved arched bridge which connected the village island to the mainland.

"It's almost time to take back Garden. I feel so sorry for everyone there who has had to suffer for so long, especially Stephanie and Colette. I don't know if they've been able to see each other, but the last time we saw them, Colette decided to leave to help the resistance group hiding underground. If they still haven't then Stephanie hasn't seen her mother for six months now," Luna said. "And I wanted to come back sooner but-"

"But you couldn't, I know. It hurts so bad when you know you have the power to change something but someone tells you to wait, to be patient, but in this case it really was the right choice, and things will work out for the better because of it," Neuge reassured her.

"And you? How are you holding up after… what happened?" Luna asked.

"I'm holding up. It's hard enough just hearing about such a grand loss of life, but being there and seeing it… that's something else. But these things, you have to come to terms with quickly if you want to respond quickly. I think Hattie's worse. Poor girl blames herself because she thinks that her acting rash caused Torvald to do it. While she probably shouldn't have done it, the chances he wouldn't have used it anyway were pretty low to begin. 'We have a new toy so let's see it how it works', that sort of thing. That kind of action could never be decided by something as tiny as that. Just people who are so damned sick in the head to even think to use a doomsday weapon in the first place."

"Well, we have to move ahead, regardless if the Lunarians come to help us or not. We can't let something like that go unpunished," Luna said, looking over the lake. She rested her palms against the concrete guardrail and looked out the sea, smiling. "You know, if you had told we'd be having this kind of conversation where you open up all your feelings to me, I would have laughed. But I really am happy that you- NEUGE!"

Luna had barely glanced back at Neuge when she caught glimpse of a man placing his hand on her mouth. Luna spun around and was about to summon her Keyblade but the man was ready, and flourished his own Keyblade, paralyzing Luna's body with a quickly jolt of thunder magic.

Unable to feel any weight in her legs, Luna toppled over and fell on the ground. Her world was sideways, but she could still make out Neuge struggling against the man's grasp.

"How touching... I was almost going to let you continue for a while but then I remembered I don't exactly have the luxury of standing around all day," the man said. Luna had seen him before, she was sure of it. Sabbat, a general of one of Horus' units, she had remembered him being referred as. Luna tried to reply but found that her tongue was unusually numb, like it was not her own.

"I want you to deliver a message to Sora. You know him quite well, yes? Tell him that he will come to the Town Square in Radiant Garden where he will be among the first to bear witness to the many sacrifices that are to come, or if he so prefers, he is welcome to stand by and let someone he cares about die."

Sabbat materialized a corridor of light with his Keyblade and dragged Neuge into it. Luna heard Neuge scream through the man's hand and then nothing. She tried herself to say something but her cries only came out as pathetic gasps of air.

It was around a minute later that some feeling began to return to her body. She attempted to stand up but found the sensation of walking alien to her and fell back down. Still, she persisted, grabbing the slab of concrete that the bridge provided for support and helping herself up. She began to drag her feet back to the town.

* * *

 **A/N: So it seems someone is forcing an inevitable confrontation at Radiant Garden. Sora might be going there sooner than he'd hoped, but how will that affect The Wayfinders' plans? And Kairi's back, who I've been eager to introduce into the story for quite a while now. I can't be sure that you'll get the next chapter before E3 since I want to work on Through Smoke and Flames as well, but I'll try my best to work on both.**


	61. Bonfire Night

**A/N: So my hype during this E3 went from 'HOLY F**KING S**T, NOT MY BLUEBERRY MOM!' to 'Well this is kind of underwhelming? Again?' to 'I TAKE IT BACK, PLEASE FORGIVE ME LORD NOMURA FOR I HAVE TRANSGRESSED!' or something like that. Seriously, whatever you thought of E3 this year, you can't deny that Kingdom Hearts brought it and knocked it out of the park. January can't come soon enough! Anyway, what were we doing? Oh yeah, there's a story we need to finish.**

* * *

Chapter 60

Bonfire Night

Luna managed to travel as far at the gates of the town where no support meant her legs finally giving away. She fell to the ground once again but luckily she didn't have to wait long to attract attention. The voice of a woman she had never seen before, plump and wearing blue, called out for help. Eventually more and more people were drawn to the paralyzed girl. Luna rolled onto her stomach and used her arms to pull herself forward but was promptly held in place by another one of the citizens.

"Now now, dear child, what's the matter? You can't walk?" A man asked her from somewhere out of her vision.

"Please… I need… to get to the casa- the cassssstle," Luna sounded out. It seemed her tongue hadn't completely returned to normal.

"Perhaps she's drunk? Dear, you look too young to be drinking," said the concerned woman who had first come upon her.

"No! I'm naw- n-not!" Luna didn't have time for this. All she could think about at the moment was finding Sora.

"Hey, hey, hey! Move out of the way!" yelled someone from behind the group of onlookers. Eugene pushed his way through to the front and scooped Luna up into his arms. "You okay? What happened?"

"He took Noose… Noo- Neeewje," Luna sounded out. Even though it wasn't her fault, she was getting angry with herself for not being able to get to the point quickly enough.

"Alright, alright, I'm gonna take you to the castle. Rapunzel, over here!" Eugene called out.

"Eugene? Luna! What happened?" Rapunzel emerald green eyes looked down at Luna. She could also see Snow joining them shortly after.

"Not entirely sure but she said that Neuge was taken by someone? I'm guessing that someone also did this to her," Eugene said. Luna lowered her eyelids briefly, glad she didn't have to explain it twice.

Eugene managed to carry her all the way to the castle and to the girl dormitories. After laying her down on the bed, Rapunzel walked up to her and recommended getting some rest while they went to get Sora. Luna didn't want to sleep however. She couldn't. Whatever dangers her teacher could be facing right now as she lay here racked her mind. She waited and waited for the door to open and for Sora to pop in, but he never did. Boredom soon took over and she decided the best course of action was in fact to listen to Rapunzel.

Her eyes soon closed and she fell asleep not too long after. She had a strange and terrifying dream. She was sitting on a wooden chair in a square room with black panels on the walls. Opposite her was herself sitting in the same chair, or so she had thought at first. Then it clicked. This person was her mother. This was Kaylah.

Luna slowly brought her hand up, revealing her palm to the other girl. As if she were seeing her own reflection, her mother raised her own hand in perfect sync. Luna narrowed her eyes for a second before slowly turning to look at her hand. Out of the corner of her left eye, she saw Kaylah do the same once again. Lowering her hand at the same rate it had taken her to raise it, Luna returned to fully capturing her mother's gaze.

"You've been sleeping for a long time now. You have had the whole night to do so. Make the best of it. Destiny marches on, as does dawn to the beat of time. Soon you shall wake from slumber," her mother said. She moved her hands up to her face, as too did Luna. Horrified that her hand was moving on its own, Luna tried to bring it down but to no avail. Her mother had turned the tide and was completely dictating both her own and Luna's actions. Luna's fingers, spread out like claws gripped her face and peeled it away, exposing the face of a Heartless, pure black with yellow eyes. As her hand dropped, she looked towards her mother to see something different. Without her face, she was a creature of pure light, shining in comparison to her daughter's ugliness.

Luna's eyes shot open and she looked around for a moment, stopping when she saw Sora sitting next to her.

"You okay? Looks like you had a nightmare," Sora said. He leaned over and wiped away the beads of sweat on Luna's forehead with the hand towel in his possession. "Sorry I couldn't come sooner. What happened?"

Luna took hold of Sora's hand and gently pushed it away. "It's Horus… they have Neuge!"

Sora stared at her attentively, the concerned smile on his face replaced by a frown. "How? Tell me everything."

After relaying everything she had experienced to him, Sora leaned against the backrest and looked up at the ceiling.

"Sora, it's a trap-"

"I know, but what else am I supposed to do? Leave her to die? Not as long as I'm still breathing. Even if it means walking right into the middle of enemy territory, I will save her," Sora said.

"Then let me come with you," Luna insisted but Sora shook his head. "Why not? Doesn't she mean just as much to me as she does to you?"

"Of course, but what exactly does it accomplish if both of us end up dead? It doesn't help our friends."

"It doesn't help them if you die either!" Luna yelled. There was a silence that followed in which Sora hung his head low and closed his eyes while Luna wiped away the tears from her face. "Why must you be so damn selfish? There are people who need you, Sora. It's downright scary thinking of what will happen when we finally go up against Horus, but do you know what provides even the tiniest bit of relief to get us through our day? It's you. In the face of adversity, you've never looked away. Do you know how comforting that is for us? For me? I feel like I can do the things I do because at the end of the day, I'll get to see your smile again."

"Maybe you should stop putting me on a pedestal then," Sora said. "Why am I the be all end all of this? This isn't just about me. It's about you. It's about Neuge, and Kairi and Aladdin and everyone else. If I'm not there, that won't be the end of this fight."

"Not true. One person really can make all the difference, Sora. Either way, you'd never know whether I'm right or not unless you're there," Luna said. She pulled the covers off her and slid out of bed. "Whether you like it or not, I'm coming with you."

Sora folded his arms and gave her a barely noticeable smirk. "It's a suicide mission. Are you sure about this?"

"Like that's ever stopped us before," Luna said.

Sora bit his lower lip and nodded his head before standing up. "Well then, what are you still sitting in bed for? Come on, let's go."

* * *

 ** _Testing Site, Akuma Island_**

 ** _San Fransokyo_**

Lysander held the small flashlight up above the child's head and clicked on the button a few times. The duration of which he held onto the button varied as the light shone on and off in the child's eyes several times.

Rhea crouched down next to him. "Anything good?"

"Completely unresponsive. Like a doll. Won't… even… blink…" Lysander said as he snapped his fingers rapidly around the child's face. "It's honestly pretty creepy. Like their soul has taken out of them or something."

"Well these children have been dead for a long time now. I wouldn't be surprised if that's part of the reason they seem… well, dead inside," Rhea replied.

"Do you think we can save them?" Lysander asked. Rhea smiled at him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I know, I know. Don't count my chickens before they hatch. Still, doesn't the thought of these kids getting a new start in life sound encouraging? Then maybe they can go to school and finish their studies, grow up and be whatever they want to be."

"Heh, they'll get their homework and complain. Some might not do it but when exams come they'll be begging their teacher for tutoring when all the answers were in the homework to begin with," Rhea said with a laugh. "Yes, it does sound lovely, but I won't set myself up for disappointment either. The past is in the past and, well, what's done is done,"

Lysander solemnly agreed with a nod of his head and was about to stand up when the girl in front of him and Rhea flashed him a look. He crouched back down and stared at the girl.

"Are you okay? Can you hear me? Do you understand what I'm saying?" Lysander fired his questions at the child.

"What's happening?" Rhea asked.

"Her eyes are… they're following me. Rhea, put your hand in front of my face." Rhea did as she was told and stuck her hand out, unfortunately this resulted in almost poking out Lysander's eye. "Ah, a bit further out, please. I like this eye."

"Oh! I'm so sorry." Rhea moved hand further out before placing it in front of Lysander. The child continued to stare at her hand and when Lysander told her to take it away, the girl's eyes followed the hand back to Rhea's side before looking up at Rhea's face.

"She's looking at you now. Like I just passed some invisible magnet that drew her to you. I wonder if she can see me right now or if you're the only thing she can see," Lysander said.

"It's strange. I can feel her eyes on me. It's creepy," Rhea said, reaching out with her hand. "I'm going to try and see if I can look into her heart."

"But Rhea, you said that you never wanted to intrude on another person's feelings again."

"I know, but if it means getting us a step closer to a solution, then I have to… I need to…" Rhea hesitated for a moment before jamming her thumb against the girl's forehead. Her eyes squeezed shut, Rhea was able to make out colors in the dark, vibrant and warm. Not warm in a comforting sense but rather that it was something incredibly at odds with emotions that shouldn't be warm.

Rhea soon opened her eyes again and she dropped her hand. Lysander looked at her. "What did you see?"

"Anger… hatred, and venom so deep it could cut, but within it… joy? Why joy?" Rhea asked. She found the girl's shoulders and gripped them tightly. "Tell me! Why were you happy? I don't understand!"

The girl tilted her head before finally replying as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Why? Because killing makes me happy, of course. It's fun!"

The child began giggling as if she had heard a funny joke. Rhea shook her shoulder but it seemed to have no effect on the giggling girl. "Stop it. I said stop it! STOP IT!"

 _SMACK._

The giggling ceased the moment Rhea's hand found the girl's cheek. Realizing what she had done, Rhea pulled her hand away and backed away, her hand covering her mouth.

Lysander stood up and walked behind Rhea, kneeling and putting his arms around her. "Hey, it's okay. It's okay."

"I was scared! I didn't mean to!" Rhea whispered, still in shock.

"Calm down, Rhea. This isn't like you! Besides, I can't blame you. If someone said that to me so casually and light-hearted I'm sure I would have done the same," Lysander said. But Rhea wasn't listening. She could only continue to stare at the child and the child her. For the briefest of moments, as her hand connected with the girl's face, Rhea had felt the strangest of emotions. One that had scarily been like what she had felt from the girl's heart.

* * *

 ** _Market Square, Radiant Garden_**

Neuge stirred about for a moment before opening her eyes. Her eyelids narrowed as she tried to ascertain her surroundings before realizing that her arms were stranded above her head. She looked up but was unable to see what they were connected to, but by the feeling of the material digging into her wrists, it was a safe bet that thick rope was being used to bind her arms to something, perhaps a column. Leaning forward to look down, she managed to catch the end of a wooden pole. Also below her was a ton of wood, perfectly combustible and just eager to be ignited.

Neuge struggled about until a voice brought her to a stop.

"It's no use, I'm afraid. As a child I learned to tie knots in all sorts of ways. You never know when you'll be faced with a situation where a certain knot might come in handy. That rope's tied nice and proper," Sabbat said. He wasn't facing her, but was sitting down on the steps nearby looking down at the ground.

"You really think this will stop us? You're a fool. Even if I die here, that won't deter the rest of us. They'll emerge victorious, destroy Horus and free this town and other like it from your control," Neuge said.

"Horus? Who mentioned anything about them?"

This voice did not come from Sabbat but behind Neuge. Nil soon appeared in front of Neuge's view and stood in front of her. His helmet was held underneath his arm and Neuge had almost not recognized him through the scars and burns that protruded the boy's face.

"You're Roxas, aren't you?" Neuge said. She hadn't talked much with him outside of the occasional passing by.

"Roxas is dead," Nil said. "And soon, so will you, unless Sora arrives in time anyway. That boy's never been one to stick to the strictness of time."

"Okay, Mr. Edgelord. There's just one problem with that little plan, isn't there? Just why do you think Sora would come for little old me? Hm? He's not stupid. There's something bigger at stake than just me, he knows that. In fact, you might as well just save yourself the trouble and kill me now," Neuge said.

"Heh, heh… I wouldn't be too sure of that. I'd say I know him better than you ever could," Nil said.

* * *

 ** _Bridge to Town Entrance, Kingdom of Corona_**

"You guys are absolutely nuts!" Enna Kros screamed at Sora and Luna with her arms out wide. "You can't be serious. Do you think I'm just going to take you kids to your deaths? No, uh uh, absolutely not. If you even thought to think a minute about what you're proposing, you'd realize why I can't allow that!"

"Enna, first of all, of course we're nuts. Was there ever any doubt? Second, we know it's crazy but Neuge has spent half of her life in the Realm of the Dead. If we can help it we're not going to just stand around and let her get sent back there," Luna said.

"Right. We'll live with the consequences, but we aren't going to lose Neuge. This is her dream and I want her to be there to see it through," Sora said.

Enna rested her cheek on the back of her hand. "Well, gee, I know they keep telling you kids to follow your heat and all but not to the point where it gets you killed. Does everyone around me have a death wish? Ooooh… at least bring Lightning with you."

"We can't. The less we're noticed, the better. And I can't risk someone else trying to stop us at this point," Sora said.

"Is that how little you think of me?"

A pang of dread hit Sora and he slowly turned around to look at Lightning walking towards them. Her face was just as unreadable as always.

Luna started to stumble on her words. "Commander! I uh, we- that is-"

"There's no need to explain. I heard everything," Lightning said. She drew her Gunblade and pointed it at Sora. "So you're going to just throw everything we've been planning down the drain? Is that how you think this will go?"

"Lightning, if it was up to you and someone who you cared for was in danger, wouldn't you do anything for them?" Sora asked, stepping forward with his hand out. "That's how much Neuge means to us. I can't let that go."

"That's… that's…" Lightning gritted her teeth and forced the words out. "I have done. My sister… I tried to save her but I… I only made things worse. You really think Neuge would want you to give up your lives for her? Do you think losing three lives is worth the risk as opposed to one?"

"Why must we lose one at all? And it doesn't matter what Neuge thinks. I'm going and if you want to stop me you can try but I warn you, when my friends are in danger I won't go easy on you if you try to stop me, ally or foe," Sora said, materializing his Keyblade and pointing at Lightning.

"Sora!" Luna warned.

"You don't have to look. Don't worry, blink and you just might miss it," Sora said. Before either of them could move, another person intervened. Hair, long and golden, wrapped itself around Lightning and pulled her back. As Lightning was spun around to face her attacker, Rapunzel swung with frying pan in her hand and struck her on the head, sending her to the ground.

Sora leaned forward to get a closer look at Lightning before looking at Rapunzel. "And I thought I had it bad when you did it to me!"

"Oh dear! Is she dead?" Luna asked.

"No… no, I don't think so but that bruise…" Sora let out a whistle.

"Maybe I acted a bit to rashly," Rapunzel said with an awkward smile.

"Could be. Maybe the power of blonde hair went to your head. My advice? Make sure breakfast is by her bed the first thing in the morning," Sora said.

"I'll keep that in mind."

"But wow! I never thought I'd see you with long blonde hair again, Rapunzel! Hopefully the townspeople and your parents aren't being annoying about it," Luna said.

"My parents haven't seen it yet. Flynn was planning to help me face them later on. The townsfolk, especially the children, seem to love it though so there's that. I've even had someone tell me it suits me more than my natural hair."

"It really does. You look beautiful," Luna complimented.

"Aw, thanks. Anyway, don't you guys have somewhere you need to be going. Go! I'll handle Commander Farron. I'll say she passed out while drinking or something," Rapunzel said.

"One moment." Sora walked over to Lightning and cast Cure on her. "There. That bruise shouldn't be as visible now."

He helped Lightning up and shifted her over to Rapunzel before looking back at Enna. "The decision's up to you, Enna. I can't force you to take us, but if you believe there's even the slightest chance that this might just turn out alright, then trust me and take that chance."

Enna looked from Sora to Luna before holding out her hand. "Like I can say no to such confidence. Alright, it's official. I'm just too nice."

"We wouldn't have it any other way," Luna said, placing her hand on Enna's. Sora followed up and soon they felt their stomachs lurch as they were transported across space. When he looked around the familiar aesthetics of Radiant Garden's old borough houses greeted him.

"Long time no see, old friend," Luna said.

"Alright, we save her and then head right back. No detours," Enna clarified.

"You're the boss. Sorry about today, Luna. I guess we'll have to put that seafood date on a hold," Sora said.

"Tomorrow's good, though I was starving myself just so I could eat a lot today so I'm kind of hungry," Luna said.

Sora chuckled. "Me too. Let's hope our stomachs don't give us away."

As Sora, Luna and Enna started on their way to the square, Artemis appeared with a hand on Luna's shoulder.

"Crikey, I just had shivers! I think there's another heart piece nearby," Artemis said.

"What? Now of all times?" Luna asked.

"Well, it's somewhere within a five mile radius. It's not much to go on, but if you want, I could go scouting for bit. You'd lose your Keyblade for a while though."

"We can't afford that right now. We'll just have to come back for it another time," Luna said.

Sora nodded and kept walking. He took in the houses as he passed by each one. Light could be seen through some of the windows while others remained pitch black. If there was a threat to the town, it didn't seem to make itself apparent on the surface at least. For a moment, he considered running all the way to the mineshaft where the Restoration Committee were waiting but he knew that every second wasted was a second that might see Neuge die. He had also promised Enna who had trusted him enough to give him this chance. He wouldn't break that promise.

As they passed under the bridge, voices nearby peaked Sora's interest, ones that seemed to be coming from the square.

"Sora, I don't like this one bit. It's not too late-"

"It's fine, Enna. It's fine," Sora reassured her. They took the stairs up and arrived at the Market Square where a huge crowd was gathered. At the level they were at and from how high the pole was raised, they had a perfectly good view of Neuge's upper body. He could also just barely make out Sabbat's head moving back and forth closer to the front of the crowd.

"You are here today to witness the beginning of a cleansing. This woman and her band of merry misfits have sought to overthrow the Torvald regime by any means possible. She would stop at nothing to destroy everything we as a community have built, even if it meant putting all of your lives at risk," Sabbat lambasted, his tone sharp and harsh.

"Lies. You're the one using them as shields," Luna said, clenching her fist.

"And the only way they'll learn is by example. A fish that dares to leap out of water will only know propriety when they end up on land. If they are willing to give themselves up, then no more harm will come to them, but to understand that we are serious they have to see that we are serious. This woman, this _witch_ … will be consumed by the very fire she wishes to bring on this town."

Sora pulled his hood over his head and began moving. He sure Luna called out to stop him but he wasn't listening. In his hand was the other knife Xion had given him. He pushed past the citizens in his way who looked at him with suspicion. If they had seen his face, he didn't care. The moment he reached Sabbat, it would all be over anyway. His cover would be blown and any guards in the area would be coming down on them like hounds. But at least he would have saved Neuge.

He had almost reached the front when a boy, probably the age of Stephanie, had run out from the crowd and threw a rock at Sabbat, striking him in the back of his head. The crowd seemed to shrink back but the boy stood his ground and yelled at the top of his lungs: "WE'RE NOT AFRAID OF YOU!"

Sabbat glared at him for a moment before looking to the side. "I think this boy needs to be escorted home."

"No! Please don't hurt him. He's sorry. You're sorry, aren't you, Devon?" A woman who Sora presumed was his mother ran in front of the boy and shook his shoulders.

"No, I won't apologize. Why are you all so damn submissive? Why won't you face the truth?" Devon yelled to the crowd.

Sabbat seemed to force a smile that came out more mangled than he had hoped for. As he walked towards the boy, Sora emerged from the crowd.

"Leave him alone," he said, pulling his hood down. There were gasps and whispers of his name among the crowd, but Sora ignored them and walked in between Sabbat and the boy and mother.

He looked back to Devon and smiled. "You're a brave kid, but don't go giving your mother shocks anytime soon, okay? Unless it's Halloween. Or April Fool's. You're good then."

The boy smiled and the mother thanked Sora before heading into a crowd that welcomed them warmly. A man from the front of the crowd put his hand on Sora' shoulder.

"You've come to save us?" he asked. His voice was weak and hoarse but Sora could still make out the hope that filled it, making it even harder for him to respond.

"I'm sorry. Not yet. I'll be back soon, but you need to endure just a little longer," Sora said.

Sabbat laughed. "Amazing. So it's true. Your people really do take priority over everyone else's lives."

"That's not true! Don't twist my words." Sora left the crowd's side and walked over to Sabbat. "I will not let the people of this town suffer but I won't let you hurt the people I love either. You may have some conniving plan up your sleeve to make me and my friends submit. My plan's simpler. I'm going to save Neuge, then I'm going to save Radiant Garden and… hold on, here's where it really gets good—I'm going to wipe Horus off the face of the _whole_ world. Neuge won't die today. You on the other hand, I can't guarantee."

"You talk big, I'll give you that. But if words are all you have then I have no interest in capitulating," Sabbat said. He suddenly looked to Sora's right. Following his gaze, Sora's heart sank when he saw two guards dragging both Luna and Enna out next to him. "Who knew you had quite the propensity for dragging people into your messes! It's like you don't care if you lose a few more friends along the way."

"Don't hurt them," Sora said, more calmly now. "You asked for me, right? Well, I'm here. I'm the one you want, not them."

"Oh, what joy! How the paragon of justice kneels at the slightest hint of pain. That's why you'll never defeat us, boy. You lack the one thing we have—will. We've lived through the flames of war, even willingly stepped through them. We are prepared to give our lives if necessary to further the cause. You, on the other hand, could never make that decision on your own volition. If you want this victory so badly then you have to be willing to die for it and most importantly, you have to be prepared to watch your friends die!"

Sabbat summoned his Keyblade and aimed it at Luna's chest. Sora yelled but had only just started moving when Sabbat's Keyblade lit up a hot white. Before he could reach Luna, the Keyblade suddenly materialized into his hand and a white light shot out of its tip. The Thundaga spell went off from Sabbat's Keyblade and hit the light, the slowly appearing form of Yuna visible as she took the hit.

For a few seconds, Sora stood there completely dumbfounded. Then, Rikku and Paine popped out from Keyblade as well and flew to Yuna.

"Yunie!" Rikku cried.

"No…" Even Paine's emotionless mask had broken, her breathing a lot more erratic.

"Please tell me she's alright. She's alright, isn't she?" Luna asked.

"Why would you do something so careless? You… you idiot!" Rikku yelled as she rubbed at her eyes.

Yuna tried to say something but all that came instead were tiny mouth movements. It took a few seconds before she was finally able to construct something. "I feel… sleepy…"

Sora knelt beside her and cast Curaga. "Oh no you don't. Come on, stay with us, Yuna. Don't fall asleep."

Enna suddenly teleported out of the guard's grasp and reappeared next to Yuna. "I'll take her to Merlin's."

She scooped up the tiny pixie and teleported again before the guard could grab her. The guard turned to look at Sora but before he could do anything, he was assaulted from behind by one of the members of the crowd. Slowly, more and more of the ravenous crowd joined in, attacking the other guards stationed in the area. Luna managed to break free of her own captor and pushed him away, throwing him in to be swallowed by the angry mob.

Sora grabbed his Keyblade off the ground and ran forward to strike Sabbat. As he swung, he found his attack blocked, but not by Sabbat. The figure looked to have dropped in from one of the rooftops nearby.

"It's good to see you again, Sora," Nil said.

Sora drew his Keyblade away from him and backed away. "Roxas…"

Luna stopped struggling against her captor when she heard him call out the boy's name. "What? Sora, what do you mean Roxas?"

"Yeah, I didn't have the chance to tell you but when I was in San Fransokyo we fought and-"

"He saw a ghost. A face of someone who once was but no longer is," Nil finished for him. "Oh, how I've longed for this moment. Horus had nothing to do with your master being kidnapped. Sabbat and I made a little pact in order to lure you here. It was all me. You see the lengths I'll go to until you understand that only either of our deaths will see it end? I will go after everyone you ever cared for, I will burn this entire town to the ground if I have to. Does that not demand your unequivocal attention? Must I do more? Perhaps scatter their ashes to the hellish flames after I'm done. Does that spur you to action?"

"Roxas! Why… are you doing this? Can't we just talk?" Sora asked, backing away as Roxas swung his katana recklessly at Sora.

"I've said all there is to say. In this world it's eat or be eaten. I made my choice a long time ago. Now it's your turn," Roxas said, bringing the katana overhead. Sora parried with his Keyblade and dodged to the right. Roxas stretched his hand out toward Sora before slowing moving it to the pyre under Neuge. "Or do you need further convincing?"

"NO!" Sora attempted to tackle Roxas before he could do anything but was too late. Roxas managed to blast the pyre with a blue burst of flame that sent it alight. As Sora brought Roxas to the ground expecting a collision, they instead fell through the floor and ended up somewhere in the air.

Roxas grabbed Sora by the collar and threw several punches at his face. Sora managed to grab Roxas' fist after a few punches, flipped them around and aerial recovered off Roxas, sending him through the glass window of the building behind them. Summoning his Keyblade, Sora drove it into the window a level below where Roxas had entered. The glass smashed and Sora just managed to grab onto the ledge, his Keyblade falling from his grasp to the ground.

He pulled himself up into the dark room and caught his breath as he used the table to support himself. He could feel every part of him shaking. His legs felt like jelly, like they could just buckle and give way at any moment, but he had to press on. He just knew that Roxas, or Nil, would not rest until he had found Sora. His every breath was not contingent upon needing rest, but rather knowing he could gain it from Sora's death. If that was all that truly mattered to him, maybe Roxas really was dead.

From what he could tell, he had found his way into the building once owned by Xanatos. He stepped out into the hallway and slowly closed the door behind him so as not to make any noise. It didn't take long for him to find a sign showing which floor he had ended up on. The forty second floor, which seemed to be a part of a bulk collection of floors comprised of labs.

With long, quick strides, Sora made his way down the hall, all the while listening out intently for any steps in an otherwise lonely building.

* * *

Back at the Market Square, Luna hurried over to the pyre where Neuge was tied. The fire, small at first, had grown quickly since Sora and Roxas had disappeared.

"Don't worry, Neuge. I'm gonna get you out of here, okay?" Luna yelled.

"Why did you come here?" Neuge asked. It wasn't exactly the response Luna had wanted to hear.

"Neuge, asking why we're here is like asking why I even bother waking up every day. Now I'd appreciate it if you'd be quiet and stay still." Luna drew her tantō from its holder on her thigh and began to cut at the thick rope.

"Luna, watch out!" Neuge yelled, looking behind the teen. Luna turned her head in time and dodged out of the way as Sabbat tried to strike her down the with Keyblade.

"You should listen and go home, little girl. This is no place for one such as you," Sabbat said.

"Well you'll soon learn that this 'little girl' is just full of surprises," Luna said, summoning Dream Seeker. Bringing it in front of her, she waited patiently for Sabbat to make the first move. She supposed there was some motivation behind her lack of aggression in that her teacher was watching her fight.

Sabbat flew forward and launched attack after attack on Luna. After holding her guard up for a few seconds, Luna broke through the attack and jumped back, casting Fire magic at him repeatedly. Sabbat erected a shield, absorbing the magic before redirecting the shots back at Luna. Luna quickly rolled out of the way and did a little spin before throwing her Keyblade like a boomerang at Sabbat.

"Stopga!" Sabbat yelled with his hand out. Luna's mouth was left as agape as she watched her Keyblade freeze in mid-air. Sabbat continued to motion with his hands, turning the Keyblade around and throwing it like a javelin right back at Luna. Her first instinct was to bend backwards, flattening her stomach so that the Keyblade could fly over her. She pulled up again only to have Sabbat slam his fist into the side of her face, knocking her down.

With his Keyblade pointed downwards at Luna's chest, Sabbat looked over at Neuge. "I suppose before you die, you can get one last look at your pupil as she is struck down in front of you. One last failure to top off the apogee of your life."

Luna clenched her teeth and braced herself for the blow when two arrows flew in from her left, one striking Sabbat in his right shoulder and the other his right leg. Luna summoned her Keyblade back to her and blasted Sabbat away with a gust of Aeroga.

Luna slowly stood up and looked to her right, her big grin appearing on her face when she saw Merida and Robin Hood.

"Good thing we arrived on time, eh? Any later and you'd have been a Jammie dodger," Merida said.

"I have no idea what that is. Anyway, how are you guys even here? This is crazy!" Luna cried.

"Don't you have more important thing to be worrying about, dear? Such as, for instance, that woman currently being roasted on an open fire? Dear I say it's a good thing it's not a spit roast," Robin said.

Merida blew a piece of her fiery red hair out of the way as she focused on Sabbat. "We'll handle this miserable nyaff. You go and save her."

Luna nodded and ran over to Neuge while Robin and Merida kept their bows trained on Sabbat.

"You've fared in the sport of archery before, I take it, princess?" Robin asked.

"That's queen to you. And I might know a thing or two. Why?"

"Let's have a little contest of our own, shall we? I bet I can hit dead centre before you can," Robin challenged.

"Oh, you're on foxylocks," Merida replied with a smile.

* * *

As he approached the elevator and pressed the button, Sora heard footsteps coming from above him. Frantically, Sora smashed his thumb against the button several times before giving up. With it all the way at the bottom floor it would take a while for it to arrive to him. He had to do with going down the stairs instead.

After making it down to the next floor, Sora set off down the hall when he heard Roxas' voice coming from further up the stairs.

"Can you hear me, Sora? You know I admit, when I showed myself to you in San Fransokyo, I was disappointed. I don't know, I guess I expected your reaction to be more… expressive. I'd hoped you'd have more to say, or maybe you were just having too much fun running around with your girlfriend and your friends that I didn't enter your mind even once."

"That's not true!" Sora suddenly burst out, unable to contain himself. "Of course I thought about you. I never spoke my mind about it much to others but that doesn't mean you weren't on it."

"Don't lie to me! I was only ever a passing thought for you, a passing thought for a hero with bigger things on his mind. A boy who only ever sees things in passing. How could you ever have any time for a monster like me."

Roxas soon appeared around the corner of the stairs. He stopped as soon as he reached the landing and stared at Sora.

"Don't call yourself that! You don't have to let Xanatos tell you who you are. He can't control you anymore. And didn't I care enough to make you your own person? How can you say that? That… really hurts actually," Sora said, placing a hand on his chest. "Doesn't that show that I care? If I didn't, I wouldn't feel this way."

"Sora, I… _hngh_!" Roxas clutched at his helmet and whipped his head away from Sora.

"What did Xanatos do to you? Roxas, you have to fight it! I know you know this isn't how you really feel. What about Xion and Lea? They need you, especially Xion! You have the freedom to choose whether you hate or like me. Whatever you decide, I'll respect that, but it has to be your choice. And if you do decide that our friendship is worth something, then I'll be there to help pick up the pieces. It may take a while, but we'll rebuild what's been broken."

" _NGH_! GAAAH!" Roxas yelled. Then, in the most abrupt and hysterical way, he began banging his head against the wall repeatedly.

"Roxas… Roxas, stop!" Sora called for calm. Roxas obeyed, but the silence that followed was uncanny and filled Sora with dread. "Roxas?"

"Nice try, Sora. You almost had me there, believing that crap you just spewed," Roxas said. "But these _are_ my own thoughts. Whether I'm a tool of someone else or not, all of it, _all of it_ , is merely a means to an end. As long as you're around I'll never be free of these poisonous thoughts. Then, maybe then, I can see Xion again and apologize to her."

"You've lost it… You're not thinking clearly," Sora said.

"Oh? Then you admit to wanting to tell me how I should feel? I thought it was up to me to choose."

"You know what? You're right. As long as I'm around, you'll never be free. Why didn't I think of that? Guess I'll have to make it easy for the both of us. See ya!" Sora flashed him a quick grin. Then, quickly turning, he pulled open the door next to him and ran through, slamming it shut behind him.

The room he had entered was a laboratory much like the one he had arrived in. Desks were placed in a disorderly fashion around the room, varying in shape and size and containing multiple scientific apparatus. Sora managed to slide across and duck behind one of the workstations as Roxas entered the room.

"There's no use hiding. You're only prolonging the inevitable. Stand and fight me like a man!" Roxas yelled, beginning to search the room.

 _So where do I trade in my manhood card_? Sora thought as he listened closely to Roxas' footsteps. He inched around the corner of the work desk. In front of him was another desk with equipment, Bunsen burners and next to them the gas valves which they would be connected to. Sora had somewhat fond memories of using them when he had been to school on the islands, though with the corn chips they had been given to burn, Sora had been more of a eat-his-and-let-Riku-do-the-actual-experiment kind of person. But the Bunsen burner wasn't necessarily what he was interested in at the moment. The gas valves, on the other hand, could prove useful.

Getting on all floors, Sora crawled over to the work station, slowly stood up and turned the gas valve on before heading around the workstation for cover. He just hoped that that helmet Roxas was wearing hindered rather than helped when it came to smell. His next destination was a table in the centre of the room with gas valves on opposite sides.

"Are we really doing this? Playing games like we're children? Or do I need to force you out? I don't have to do this. The thing with you is that you're easy to draw out. If you won't face me, then perhaps Luna will be happy to take your place. You did bring her here for me to kill after all," Roxas said.

Sora gritted his teeth and rocked his head forward in anger. He had almost proven Roxas right. Instead, he peered around the corner and, seeing Roxas' back turned to him, hurried over to the other table. Just like last time, he turned on each gas valve.

Suddenly, he heard something smash, with pieces of glass falling to the floor. It hurt him to see Roxas' desperation starting to creep in. This all felt so wrong to him. How long had it been since they had all been standing on the clock tower in Twilight Town, eating ice cream and looking at the sunset? Just one incredibly crowded group of friends enjoying a moment of calm. Now it had all felt like a distant dream, and though he knew he shouldn't blame him, Sora was annoyed at Roxas for making it seem like that.

Absorbed in his own thoughts, he had almost failed to notice Roxas' footsteps getting closer. He turned to his right just in time to see Roxas approaching from his flank. Sora ducked underneath the table and clutched his mouth. His eyes darted left and began following the boots walking towards him. Suddenly, the boots stopped… right in front of Sora. The brunette closed his eyes for a moment and thought of the many places he would rather be than here.

Just then, his stomach grumbled and his eyes shot open in horror. It was not from the rumbling sound his stomach had chosen to make in that moment, but because Roxas had chosen the precise moment to smash something else. Soon the boots were moving again and Sora dropped his mouth and breathed. He needed to get out now. If Roxas didn't kill him, the stress certainly would.

He crawled out from beneath the desk and sneaked over to the side of the room where other work benches are. Starting to feel somewhat nauseous, Sora flicked the rest of the gas valves on his way up to the entrance. He reached the door when a small knife came from behind and sliced his cheek. He spun around to face Roxas.

"Now just what do you think you're doing running around like a common household rat?" Roxas asked. He raised his hand. "Well it doesn't matter. I've waited too long for this moment."

Sora's hand moved up the door until it found the handle. "Roxas, I can't help you if you won't even try to help yourself, but I will tell you this—I wouldn't do what you're thinking of doing right now if I were you."

"Still telling me what to do, are you? You can take your advice with you to the grave!" Roxas yelled. He wasn't able to release the ball of fire in his hand before it went off, exploding in his face and blowing up the entire room. Sora managed to open the door in time, but felt the force of the blast and was blown into the hallway, hitting the back of his head against the wall.

* * *

 **A/N: A lot of stuff here to take in. Since this was getting too long, I decided to cut it up so you'll have to wait to see what happens to Sora and Roxas next time. Also going back to KH3, I hope the cooking minigame is long enough to where I can play while listening to Gordon Ramsay yell at Sora for forgetting the lamb sauce.**


	62. The Embers Left Behind

**A/N: Going slightly off-topic for a moment, it's amazing to see what people are already doing with the material presented to them in these recent trailers, whether it's cosplay of Kairi's new outfit or stories on Aqua's fall to darkness or even covering Chikai now that it's been fully released. Makes me wonder if Nomura or Yasue see these things online. Anyway, not too long to go until the end of the first part of Paved With Gold. Also, Riku and Kairi's stories will be separate stories so as not to break up the pace of this story when we come back to it.**

* * *

 _Chapter 61_

 _The Embers Left Behind_

Sabbat whipped his Keyblade about, knocking away arrow after arrow from both Robin Hood and Merida. He dodged to the right and sent a shard of ice back at Merida. The curly redhead retrieved an arrow from her quiver quickly and shot without taking time to aim. The arrow sailed through the air and collided with the ice shard, leaving tiny blue flakes in the aftermath.

He cut through the air with his Keyblade and summoned a ball of fire that soon expanded. Wings sprouted out from the ball and soon the shape of the ball itself became more pronounced, taking the shape of a phoenix.

"Err, Luna? This might be more your area of expertise," Robin said.

"Just give me… one… second…" Luna said, still cutting at Neuge's ropes.

"Ha! You're master wasn't a very good teacher apparently. Lesson one of any fight, never have your back turned on your opponent," Sabbat said. He aimed his Keyblade at Luna and Neuge and the Phoenix began to fly towards them. Merida and Robin began firing arrows at the Phoenix but the being of fire turned them to mere dust on contact.

"Luna, you have to go now. Leave me!" Neuge cried.

"No, I won't."

"Luna, please-"

"I told you to be quiet! I think… YES!" Luna screamed, managing to cut through the ropes at last. Neuge hopped off the pyre, brought to a smoldering state by Luna's water magic, and summoned something of her own.

"A jar?" Luna asked.

"Just you wait and see," Neuge replied. Floating in the air, the ceramic jar faced forward and sucked the phoenix in its entirety into the hole. Neuge walked forward and placed her hand on it, looking over to Sabbat. "I should have you know something. I'm not like my students. They'd be kind enough to show you mercy. I've got none to give."

With a click of her fingers, the magic jar unleashed the phoenix which flew right back to its creator. Sabbat seemed to panic, putting his arms up as if they could shield him from whatever lay in store for.

What did lie in store however, Luna looked away for. She saw the darkness light up out of the corner of her eye and, try as she might, was unable to block out the sound of a spine-chilling scream. When she looked towards Neuge, she saw only a person with fire in their eyes. Luna suddenly took interest in the ground.

"You can look now," Neuge said. Luna had been able to guess as much from dying sound of the roaring flames, but refused to look up anyway. Neuge finally turned to her. "If you don't have the stomach for this, it's fine. I don't want you to have to the stomach for it."

"That's not it. The way you were just staring… watching as it happened. It was like you were a completely different person. It was scary," Luna said.

Neuge put her hands on Luna's shoulder and gave them a shake. "I'm sorry, but I also won't guarantee that it'll never happen again. Sometimes you just have to grin and bear it, no matter what."

"No matter what? What, like it's out of your control? Why do you put yourself down like that?"

"Because I owe it to the dead to look at them!" Neuge snapped back at her. Luna finally looked up at Neuge to see a mixture of irritation and fear in her eyes. She repeated in a whisper, "I owe it to them."

Luna struggled with her feelings for a moment, not sure whether to accept that answer or not. It was the former that one out in the end. She turned swiftly and hugged Neuge.

"I'm just glad we got here in time," Luna said.

Neuge placed a hand on Luna's head and smiled.

* * *

As heavy as they felt, Sora managed to force his eyelids open and shifted his head to the side, looking to the room opposite him. The laboratory was completely ablaze. Even from outside where he was sitting, Sora could feel the heat of the flames.

"Holy crap…" Sora whispered under his breath. Pushing up against the wall, he slowly moved up it until he was standing. He stumbled over to the door and kicked upon the door with his foot. Now he could really feel the fury of the flames. As he walked down the narrow path, it wasn't long before he discovered Roxas lying with his back against the counter.

He looked over to Sora for a moment before turning back to focus on the flames in front of him. "It's funny how a little fire puts a lot of things into perspective. When people first discovered such a destructive force had the potential to do amazing things, I wonder what was going through their minds."

"Probably the same things you're feeling now," Sora replied.

"My soul is burning, Sora. I can feel it. I never left that mansion in Twilight Town. No, it's more like I'm stuck between two hells. I'm not asking for much. I don't want heaven. If hell wants me back after all is said and done then I'll follow without question. But right now, I want to live somewhere in the middle of those two extremes, like you do. But every time I think I can do it, something pulls me back, like an invisible lasso tugging and dragging me back into insanity. I hate you, and worst of all I hate that I hate you. I'm confused."

"I couldn't tell. Really," Sora answered dryly.

Roxas chuckled and stood up. "You always know how to wind me up."

"What can I say? I learned from the best," Sora said. He offered his hand to Roxas. "So are you going to stop being stubborn and accept my help?"

"I'm a regular Frankenstein's monster, aren't I? I think that's one of the things I studied in that data Twilight Town. Of course, I never actually studied it, it was just DiZ tinkering with my head but still… even that felt more real than this," Nil said.

"The data world… would you go back? If you could?" Sora asked.

"I'm not sure. Why are you asking?"

"I don't want to see you suffer, and if there were a way, any way at all, that I could help give you peace of mind… a-and I mean, it's not like Xion and Lea couldn't see come there and see you again, or Kairi or Luna or… well, it's your choice."

"You know just even looking at you, so close as you are, I want to reach out and strangle you. My head is telling me that could also give me peace of mind. Heh, heh, this is so messed up… yeah, I think going back to the data world might be best. A nice long vacation..."

"Then let's get out of here. Feels like an oven in here," Sora said. He turned to leave when Roxas gripped his wrist.

"Xion… you said she needs me?" he asked.

"Yeah… all she can think about is taking her revenge against a guy named Janus after she and Riku were tortured by him," Sora answered. "I'm afraid if she pushes herself too far she's going to get herself killed."

"I think I can find them," Roxas said, turning around and setting off into a run.

"Huh? Wait, where are you goi…ng…" Sora trailed off in, watching in astonishment as Roxas jumped from one of the broken windows and fell. Sora followed in his footsteps and dived out the window, transitioning into a glide. With what limited a view he had, he tried to scan the area but could find no sign of Roxas.

He eventually landed on the ground only to kick at it in frustration. Just when they had finally seemed to make amends, Roxas had already left him. Well, he supposed not quite. Roxas had mentioned that just looking at Sora made him want to throttle him. There was still a ways to go, but Sora wouldn't give up on his friend. There just had to be a way to bring Roxas back to normal, something he was overlooking. He just had to think. No matter the situation, there was always something, no matter how tiny and insignificant it seemed at first, that had the potential to make huge waves. He had brought Roxas back before, so it was just a matter of doing it again.

As he began walking back to the borough, he noticed more and more people coming out of their homes, glancing up at the fire before looking down at him in surprise. He didn't intend to hide his face either. He had been running away from it for some time but now, as they looked upon him, he finally had to face the truth. One person really could make all the difference, and it was his presence here and now that gave them hope. He was going to save these people and take their home back from Horus. That, he silently vowed.

He slowed to a crawl when five people blocked off his path. Their cold, self-aggrandizing smiles told Sora all he needed to know before they even summoned their Keyblades.

"So you're finally here, trickster. Finally grow a pair?" asked one of them.

"Trickster?" Sora asked.

"The one who greeted the worlds with a deceptive smile, only to bring about their ruin. You are the proof that not all that glitters is gold. If Lord Irva fails to reunite the factions, this world will fall to chaos."

"And you're the only one who stands in the way of that ultimate dream," the Keyblade wielder on the far right said, holding her Keyblade up at Sora.

"Trickster, huh? Not a bad name, but I don't hide my intentions," Sora said, summoning his Keyblade. "Do you really want to do this in front of all these people? I'd feel pretty ashamed if I had to publically embarrass you."

"You cocky little brat. If you think you can take on the five of us by yourself then power really has gone to your head," said the man in the middle.

"Oh, I know I can take you on. I think the fact that you haven't attacked me yet means that you're the ones who are afraid," Sora said.

The man in the middle let out a sardonic laugh and shook his head. "I like this kid. Shame you weren't on our side. We might have gotten along well."

"I somehow doubt that," Sora replied. There was a period of silence in which the six of them circled each other. The group of five spread out and surrounded Sora and their attack began. The woman on the right made to attack first, but Sora drew his Keyblade inwards before cutting forward with a Zantetsuken, sending her quickly to the ground. He looked behind him quickly as another wielder approached and stretched his leg back as far as he could to kick him away before turning around to face him and the others.

Two more came in one after another, with Sora parrying the first only to dodge out of the way of the second attack. As a third lunged for him, Sora quickly cast Stopga, freezing them mid-lunge. He jumped over the frozen woman's shoulder, flipped and cast Thundaga as he was landing back on the ground. The fourth person, who had been just out of the range of Thundaga, cast Firaga, which Sora countered with a spray of Blizzaga and then proceeded to cast Stopra on them. Using Collision Magnet on the frozen body, he jumped to the side and swung left with a little spin. Time soon unfroze and the man found himself flung off his feet and into the woman who had just been unfrozen as well.

There was a yell from one of the two remaining wielders standing, one that grew closer as he ran for Sora. For him, all composure had probably gone out of the window, which was made even clearer when he partner was shouting at him to stick together. The man jumped into the air and suddenly flew down to strike Sora as though he were a meteor. Sora transformed his Keyblade into its rubber mallet form and swung, meeting the clashing Keyblade. With some effort, Sora completely robbed the guard of any momentum in his attack and sent him flying, slamming his back into a nearby house.

So preoccupied was he with the man that he failed to notice that his partner had transformed his own Keyblade into a gauntlet.

"LOOK OUT!"

Sora heard the scream come from one of the townspeople who had left their homes but before he could turn his head in time, he felt a fist slam into his head and send him to the ground. His brain racked from side to side and he could feel the taste of blood in his mouth. The Horus member prepared to throw down his hand again but Sora rolled out of the way in time and spit on the ground. Slowly he stood up and recalled his Keyblade to his side before raising it in a defensive stance.

"What, is that all you got? " Sora goaded. "I mean, if you wanted to make a baby cry, maybe, just maybe…"

The man transformed gauntlet back into a Keyblade and chuckled. "I guess I am starting to get soft. I usually save my delicate constitution for better, less trivial pursuits."

"I don't care. Just hurry up already," Sora said coldly.

"If you _insist_ ," the man uttered these last words with contempt. He suddenly cast a straightforward and direct discharge of electricity at Sora who raised his Keyblade in an attempt to guard against it. As the man kept up the bolt of Thundaga, Sora could feel the Keyblade vibrate violently in his hand. He quickly let go off it and warped out of the way of the attack. The man moved his Keyblade in the direction of Sora but the brunette warped away again to the other side of the Thundaga attack. He proceeded to warp back and forth like this until he reached the man, summoned his Keyblade back to him and disarmed him by slamming his Keyblade from under the man's hands. The man fell to the ground and backed away. It was satisfaction enough, and Sora let his Keyblade disappear in his hand before turning to walk away.

As he left he looked to his side, held his arm out, stuck his thumb up and then brought it down. He could feel the crowd's overwhelming sense of mirth both at his ridiculing of his opponents and his presence telling them he had not forgotten about them. With a smile he found hard to supress, he continued on his way.

A few minutes later, he was standing outside the thinly veiled light of Merlin's window. Before finding Enna in Corona, Luna and Sora had promised each other that if anything were to go wrong in their rescue mission, they would try and meet up at Merlin's. When he knocked on the door and saw Luna behind Merlin's form, he smiled.

"Sora, what happened? Where did that guy, Roxas you said? Where did he take you?" she asked, as she ran into Sora's open arms.

"Young lady, there's plenty of time for him to explain, perhaps even over a spot of tea, eh?" Merlin suggested. "It has been a while after all, hmm?"

"You'd have to make it quick. I would be surprised if they haven't alerted Horus' main force by now," said another voice he had been waiting anxiously to hear from. Neuge was knelt over by Rikku and Paine tending to the unconscious Yuna.

"And just who do you think I am? I'm not an accomplished wizard for nothing," Merlin shot back as if offended by Neuge's comment.

"Neuge! I'm glad you're okay." Sora walked over in a hurried pace to Neuge and flung his arms around her. He stepped back slightly to observe her. "You're okay, right? We came in time?"

"And amazingly so at that. Anyway, Yuna might need you," Neuge said.

"We've done all we can for her." Sora looked to the other side of the room for the first time since he had entered to see Enna Kros, Merida and Robin Hood.

"WOAH! What are you guys doing here?" Sora asked, a slight crack in his voice.

"Now don't think I haven't been playing my part. I've been travelling around the world, gathering the most skilled and greatest minds for the new order that we've been making," Merlin explained.

"I stay in contact with Merlin regularly through something called a PHS," Neuge said.

"Yeah, we have one," Sora said, showing her the Personal Handiphone that Merlin had given him and Luna.

"Which does remind me… Cid and I have finished a fresh batch of them. Merida and Robin already have one as well," Merlin told them.

"Kind of hard to carry one when your dress doesn't have any pockets. Had to hide it in my bra instead," Merida said with a chuckle.

"Err, I don't think I needed to know that?" Sora asked with a faint blush.

"I'm just kidding. I don't wear a bra. Want to check?" Sora made a strange face and looked away and Merida heartily laughed. "Just kidding again, you big prude. I keep it in my quiver. Had to free up arrows but thanks to Merlin's magic, they pop right back in once they've left. Wish I had something like that when I was at the dinner table with my younger brothers, but maybe food that runs out is for the best. They don't really know when to stop eating after all."

"So if you could have refill powers, Luna, would you wish for infinite Sea Salt Ice Cream?" Sora asked.

"Ugh, no! I enjoy it but I wouldn't want to eat it all the time. I'd just about get sick of it… and from it too," Luna said with a queasy look. Sora laughed and looked back down to Yuna who seemed to be stirring about on the pillow Merlin had probably given her.

"At least she seems alright. She's a champ," Sora said to Rikku and Paine.

"She's an idiot! Why did she have to go and do that?" Rikku cried, looking away in an act Sora imagined was only to hide her tears. Most likely when Yuna woke up, she would probably never hear the end of it from Rikku.

"Hey, take it easy on her, okay? I mean, I guess I'm an idiot too because I've done something similar in the past, and like her I never thought I'd make it back," Sora said.

"You _are_ an idiot! You _are_! Life is meant to be lived, not thrown away! I wouldn't want to owe anyone who saved my life!" Rikku was practically kicking and screaming now. Paine flew over to her and put her hand over Rikku's mouth.

"What does it matter when she's alive? Let it go and think about what comes next," she said stoically to her squirming friend.

"Rikku, I really am sorry she had to do that for me. I wouldn't want anyone to sacrifice themselves for me either. I'm… I'm so glad she's alright, but I promise that I'll work hard to make sure I never have my guard down like that again," Luna promised.

Neuge looked from Luna to Sora and the pixies before letting out an exaggerated sigh. " _Ugh_ , enough with the pity party already. I could reprimand the both of you for putting your own lives at risk to save mine but we need to be honest with ourselves, this is kind of part of the job description, whether we like it or not. We risk our lives to protect others, thanks…" She interrupted her own conversation to take the cup of tea Merlin had given her into her hands. "Ideally, of course, it would be wonderful if everyone could realize just how precious life is, but we don't live in that world. We probably never will. The best we can do is hope we never end up in a situation where we have to choose—my life of theirs… Unfortunately, it may be impossible to avoid now."

"Well, this is a pretty dour topic. How about a change of pace?" Robin suggested.

"Right, so what happened with Roxas, Sora?" Luna asked as she received her cup. Sora took a sip of his own before launching into an explanation of what had happened in the Xanatos Building. When he had finished speaking, he found that he himself had felt slightly better about the whole affair after taking some time to parse through what had happened.

"So he's most likely looking for Xion now. Not sure if she'll be willing to welcome him with open arms though, especially when he was the one who killed her master," Sora said.

"Xanatos might have the answers. If he was the one who wired Roxas that way then there's a chance he can rewire him," Enna said.

"Yeah, I just thought about that but… what are the chances of him even deciding to help us? He has nothing to gain by it and he knows that," Luna said.

"Not to be the downer of the group, I always am I know, but you might want to start thinking about what happens if we can't help him. You say his feeling of animosity towards you haven't completely disappeared, so there is a chance that he might-"

Just then however there was a knock on the door. Merlin slid the curtain the tiniest bit to the side and peered out of the window.

"Did someone follow you?" Neuge asked, looking at Sora.

"No, I don't think so. And they would have come sooner, wouldn't they?"

Merlin let the curtain fall back in place and walked over to the table where his wand rested. "You need to leave now. Neuge, I received a message from the three fairies a while ago. Disney Castle is ready to provide any assistance necessary. Do you know when you'll launch an attack?" Merlin asked, speeding up his words after another set of knocks.

"I want to take advantage of the chaos at the moment. We'll take this town back in two days' time," Neuge said. "Stay safe, Merlin. Thanks for the help."

"Don't worry, this old wizard has a few tricks up his sleeve. Time for one last disappearing act," Merlin said. He waved his wand about and then gave a final flick, teleporting the group out of his home. He turned around as the door burst open and two armored Keyblade wielders walked in. "Ah, can I help you fine gentlemen?"

"Don't make this hard for yourself, old man. Where are they hiding?" asked the man on the left.

"Why, I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. Eh, did something happen?" Merlin asked.

"You think we didn't hear you talking in here? You're coming with us."

"Coming, sir? Coming? Noooo, I am not, I am GOING! Going far away from here, I assure you!" Merlin walked over to his wardrobe, opened and, after selecting something soon closed it, looking back to the guards with sunglasses on his face and a suitcase in his hand. "I hear Bermuda's nice this time of year."

Before the guards could act, Merlin had disappeared from sight. Hearing the sound of hooting outside, they turned around to see an owl taking off into the night.

* * *

 ** _Castle Foyer, Kingdom of Corona_**

Several times that evening as Lightning wandered around the castle, her eyes were drawn to the basement leading to the jail cells. Her head was still pounding from the hit she Rapunzel had given her with the frying pan. Rapunzel had profusely apologized for what had happened, of course, and no matter how many times Lightning had accepted her apology, Rapunzel would double down on it hard.

Lightning lifted the pack of ice she had been given off her head and stopped once more at the entrance where the stairs leading down to the basement were. She seemed to struggle with something for a moment, as reflected by the pained grimace on her face, before deciding to head down.

Her initial impression was to express a look of relief when she saw Elsa by one of the jail cells, but that relief was soon replaced by confusion at one simple question—just why was Elsa kneeling outside of a jail cell anyway, and in particular the one which inhabited David Xanatos?

"Elsa, are you… no…" As Lightning neared Elsa, her eyes looked off in the direction of the cell to where the body of Xanatos lay. His eyes were open, his pupils dilated, but the most telling sign was the small pieces of ice that stuck out of his clothing. There was no mistaking it. David Xanatos was dead.

"I… I didn't mean to. I- he-" Elsa stumbled over her words, the tears stinging at the corners of her eyes.

"Hey, take a deep breath. Compose yourself," Lightning said, getting to the matter at hand immediately. She knelt down and put her hand in the weeping snow queen's own. They were cold, she observed silently, very much like ice, though she tried to ignore this fact and instead focused on the girl's eyes. "You need to leave. Forget this happened. I'll take care of things from here."

But Elsa was too shaken to leave. Her mind was awry and she didn't seem to properly register Lightning, though her eyes had finally drifted away from Xanatos when Lightning had stepped in between them both.

"Hey, snap out of it!" Lightning raised a hand and gave Elsa a quick but restrained slap across the cheek. "I said you need to leave. Don't you dare cry. You still have a kingdom you need to protect. A sister. I'm sure that you never meant for this to happen, but it has and you need to accept it and move on. Alright, I'll say it. I'm no fashionista but even I can tell those tears look ugly on you. A queen shouldn't cry."

Elsa's mouth parted slightly as she looked into Lightning's eyes. Her father had once said those words to her a long time ago, when she had injured Anna while playing. It was a few seconds later before she rubbed at her eyes and nodded her head.

"But what will you do?" she asked.

"That's not your concern," Lightning replied. She couldn't possibly tell her what she had in mind because if she did, Elsa would want to stop her. In any case, it seemed Elsa was too distraught and had worn herself out crying to the point where it wasn't likely she would put up much resistance.

Elsa stood up and backed away for a moment before turning around to run off. Lightning looked quickly at Xanatos' pale face before setting off to work. Meanwhile, as Elsa ran through the castle's foyer, she failed to notice Mulan and Hercules walking past her. Mulan stopped and watched the girl go by, wondering why she was in such a hurry before looking over to the basement where she had seen her come from.

"Elsa, is there a… problem…? Didn't even look my way," Mulan said, sighing as he looked towards Herc. "Was it just me or did she look like she was in a hurry for some reason?"

"Does she usually keep to herself with you girls?" Herc asked.

"No. We share the same dorm so it would be kind of hard to avoid us. Rapunzel does her best to involve her in a lot of the things she organizes as well. Anyway, I'll talk to her later. Let's just get Xanatos."

Mulan and Hercules descended down the stairs into the gloomy room. They walked past cell after cell, two of which had recently contained the likes of Drakken and Yzma, before finally reaching Xanatos' cell. When they did, they were appalled at what they would discover. They watched in shock as Lightning plunged her gunblade into Xanatos' chest again and again. If the moment wasn't so serious, it would have almost have been comical. It was like watching someone prod at juicy steak with a fork over and over again. With a final stab downward, she let her gunblade stick out of Xanatos' chest and looked toward Mulan and Hercules, flecks of blood splatter on her face.

She parted her mouth slightly as she glared at them, then looked to her weapon, pulled it out and exited the cell, turning to walk past the two bewildered faces.


	63. The Beast

**A/N: So after a bit of a break in which I took some time off because I couldn't stand to look at a computer screen for long (and it's not every day we have a hot day around here) I'm finally back and ready to jump right in. It's crazy how seeing old friends again can put a perspective on certain things and motivate you, so for the last few days of August I've been working on these two chapters. Hope you enjoy reading because I've got 14,000 words that need some love right now.**

 **Also, recently another avid reader by the name of TrinityXaos recently wrote to me to let me know that, having been inspired by this trilogy of stories, he took the time to draw up some lovely designs for Luna and Astra which look absolutely amazing. What's more, he's even up for doing more so I'd be humbled if you could check those out as well as his other works at** **trinityxaos2 on DeviantArt** **. Will also be adding this in my profile but he's done an amazing job in visualizing these characters and I can't wait to see more in the future. This offer doesn't just extend to him though. I welcome absolutely anyone who wants to contribute anything to this story, be it art, ideas, anything. If there's anything Kingdom Hearts fans are, it's passionate so I'd love to see more of it. Anyway, enough clowning around. Let's get on with it, shall we?**

* * *

Chapter 62

The Beast

The door opened and Lightning walked into the council room. The silence was uncanny. They had heard everything in advance, of course. There was no way the news of Xanatos' death at the hands of Commander Farron had not spread quickly around the castle. When Sora and Luna had arrived back in Corona, they had first heard of this unbelievable incident from Kairi. With no time to waste, the group set off for the meeting room and arrived just in time to witness the accused walking into the room, escorted by Mulan and Hercules.

Neuge held open the door before it could close and Sora, Luna, Kairi, Robin, Merida and Enna quickly entered with her following soon after.

"Commander, what's this about?" Neuge asked, starting her walk towards the front. Sora hadn't noticed it before, but now that she was away from him, he could see that she was making an obvious attempt to hide her right thigh, which was only compounded by the way she was slightly leaning to her left and how she dragged her right foot across the ground.

"Neuge, are you okay?" Yen Sid stood up, more interested in ascertaining Neuge's condition than any Lightning probably had to say.

"Thanks to Sora and Luna. It could have been much worse," Neuge said. "So I leave for not even a day and you've already managed to screw things up? The world truly will be a better place when women rule it. All jokes aside, I do have to wonder how this happened."

"We arrived at the jail cells with the intention of bringing Xanatos to testify but when we arrived…" Hercules grimaced and looked over to Mulan. "We saw her stabbing her blade into his body several times. She didn't even flinch or react while she was doing it, almost like it was an everyday thing for her. But… there has to be some sort of explanation. I can't imagine she would do something like that without a reason."

"What reason do I need to cull the darkness…" Lightning responded. "…than to enact justice? You hide behind that word. You study it like it's some complex math equation when it really couldn't be any more simpler than the proportionality of the punishment meeting the crime. I did what all of you were unwilling to do, what you would all rather sit and deliberate over, knowing that that is exactly what he wants us to do. No one person should be able to put a wrench in the cogs of what we're building. I'd do it again if I had to."

"And no one person should have the ability to speak for the entire group either. You may be commander but that was a position given to you based on you being an experienced fighter in your security regiment, not on your ability to act as an autocrat," Neuge said.

"I've said my piece. What you do now is up to you." With those words, Lightning folded her arms and stared off at the floor in front of her. Sora couldn't believe it. He knew Lightning to be tougher than most and not as open to wearing her emotions on her sleeves, but her complete lack of concern regarding her fate worried him. And surely being in a security regiment hadn't prepared her for the act of killing someone, and stabbing them several times at that, especially when she had no grudge with him in the first place. It just seemed too excessive for someone as composed and methodical as her.

"Well we'll need all the help we can get with Horus. We'll decide what happens after, but if you're going to express your opinions I do wish you'd express them in a more… vocal way. We do have lines, and no matter how limited they might seem, it is imperative that every single one of us should find creative ways around them rather than bypassing them completely," Yen Sid said. He stood up and smoothed out the hem of his robes. He didn't seem particularly disgusted by Lightning's actions, maybe because he suspected the same thing Sora did.

"Lightning… is everything you're saying really true? Did you really do this?" Enna Kros asked, stepping forward. She seemed to have doubts of her own as well.

"You saw me plunge the sword into the bastard's body didn't you? What more proof do you need?" Lightning asked, looking over at Mulan.

"We will resolve the matter _later_ ," Yen Sid stressed these final words with a warning glare at Lightning. His face soon softened and he looked to Neuge. "For now, everyone is dismissed. Neuge, could you stay behind? Sora, Luna and Enna too."

"Ah, let the kids off, old man. They've done enough for the day. Also I kind of ruined their day, didn't I?" Neuge flashed them a quick wink before looking back to Yen Sid. Luna chuckled while Sora turned an embarrassing shade of pink.

"You actually do owe us one, Neuge, as well as any subsequent times you end up getting captured," Luna said.

"Alright, don't go and grow an ego on me now, especially you. Lucky for you I'll foot the bill just this once," Neuge said.

"You promised. And by the way, I'm totally never gonna let you forget how I saved you. Ego developing or not," Luna replied.

"It helps too. If you're constantly reminded of your failures, you're less likely to repeat them," Kairi said, only to duck away as Neuge shot her a look that could kill.

Soon after Sora, Luna and Kairi left the room, Sora launched into his own personal doubts about Lightning. All the evidence was there and there were even witnesses he could account for what she did, but something seemed out of place. Aside from the excessiveness of her crime, what reason would she even have to act so calmly upon being discovered? No, more than likely she had wanted to make sure she was caught in the act for some particular reason.

"I was kind of thinking the same thing, but it was more blind belief than anything. I was just standing there listening to her speak and I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I know we aren't really close with Commander Farron but I still can't believe she'd do something so reckless," Luna said.

"I'd stick with that line of reasoning then, Luna. You can bet something's up but let's put that aside for the time being," Kairi said. "How did things go?"

Not for the first time, Sora gave an account of everything that had happened between him and Roxas. Kairi never hid her concern throughout and when he had finished, she mustered up a reassuring smile that was like a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day.

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time you guys fought, right? Boys will be boys."

"That's an interesting way of taking a complex situation and turning it into something really simple but I like your optimism," Sora said.

"Just taking a page out of the person who wrote the book," Kairi replied, flashing him a wink. "Okay, I'm going to check in on Freya. She's not really used to hanging around so many people who don't look shady. You guys should talk to her too sometimes. Make her feel at home. She can be a bit reserved at first but it's not that she wants to be. It's just that she's used to a certain way of life, one that's hard to break out of."

Sora smiled, which was all Kairi needed to see. He need make no promises. He was never the type to turn down an invitation to make a new friend.

After exchanging their goodbyes and parting ways, Sora and Luna left the castle for what Luna had described as 'brighter pastures'. Sora agreed that the depressing and uncertain atmosphere in the castle was weighing down on them, so naturally it was a good idea to leave those problems behind them, at least for a little while.

As they walked through the town, they find the night air warm with the occasional light breeze blowing every now and then. At least the sky was completely devoid of clouds though it was only a shame that something was missing in a sky full of darkness save for one round white object in the sky. It was weird that someone would be born into a world where there were no stars. Not weird for them, of course, but still… weird to think all the same.

"The moon looks so lonely all by itself. You know, I think they should just hold weekly lantern celebrations to light up the night sky. They probably won't be doing them for Rapunzel's birthday anymore," Luna said, noticing that Sora was looking up at the sky.

"Ooh, I don't know about that. They probably have a budget, don't they? Wouldn't want to cut too deeply into their expenses," Sora said.

"Look at you thinking like a businessman. But yeah, you're right. Still, I wish there was some way we could let everyone know that it isn't the end of the world. Not just here but everywhere."

"Which is impossible. We just have to bring them back as quickly as possible," Sora said. "You said you sensed one of the heart pieces in Radiant Garden?"

Luna nodded her head. "Mhm, and it's the last one other than the one Horus took. We need to go back for it."

"Yeah, if Horus finds it first before us then they'll have two. I don't even want to imagine what they'll be capable of then," Sora said. They reached the town centre where less of its citizens were inhabiting its streets than before and yet it wasn't completely empty. "I've left Leon and the others in the dark for way too long. All they've done is be patient and wait. All we've done is be patient and wait. Well, the time for waiting is over. We're going to bring them into the light and drag Horus back into the shadows of the past where they belong."

"I've been waiting to hear you say that," Luna said.

"I've been waiting to hear me say that too. I was thinking about it when I stepped into that crowd in Radiant Garden. I realised that I've been running away from who I am. What me just being there can do for people. I got kind of cocky about it before and it hit me hard. Now I think I can handle it better. Be more modest about it, you know?"

"'I'll be their luminary. A guiding light for those looking to find a place to call home.'" Luna said. When Sora threw her a confused glance, she simply smiled. "Just one of my mother's stories."

"Parents just love their stories. I'm surprised your mom didn't become a children's writer," Sora said.

"You know, I think she was considering it. I'd even heard my dad tell her that she was good at coming up with stories on the fly. In that department at least, I am definitely not my mother's daughter," Luna said. "I'd like to be a writer myself but I feel like I'd need to make my stories more complex and research every little detail. She would probably write from the heart. I don't think I could."

"Well, if after everything you've seen, you still aren't sure whether you could or not…"

"I don't deserve to live this life."

"Well, I wouldn't put it like that! I don't think anyone deserves this chance more than anyone else. Not me, not you," Sora tried to elaborate.

"You're right. How should I put this… it's more so that I don't think I want any novel I write to just be a straight up copy and paste of my life," Luna said.

"Well, you know I don't read books, but I was trying to make a genuine effort for a while because you were so passionate about them, and from what I could tell the story's only a part of it. What you want to convey and how you convey it is also pretty important. Look, if you want me to look over your work sometime just say the word and I'll do it. Reluctantly, but I'll do it," Sora said. He stopped in place and brought his hand up if asking for a handshake. "But you have to promise me that you'll actually do it. I can't read what doesn't exist."

"Hmm, guess I can't back out now. I'd be glad to hear your totally unbiased opinion, Sora," Luna said, shaking his hand.

The two soon set off once again and arrived at an outdoor restaurant with a lovely view of the sea. The man serving them, Joell, was plump in build with a neatly combed moustache. After greeting them with warmth and enthusiasm, he escorted them to their table and handed them their menus.

"Hey, Sora?" Luna said after about a minute of looking through the menu.

"Yes?"

"Neuge did say she would fit the bill for us, right?" Luna asked in a sing-song voice.

"I think she did. Why do you ask?" Sora's reply was just as playful.

"Nothin'. Joell, I think we're ready to order," Luna called. As to be generous to Neuge's wallet (and that was putting it lightly), they ended up choosing the seafood platter. About ten minutes after they had made their order, their food arrived. Sora and Luna had never known they could love food as much as they did just looking at what was on their plate—fresh prawns and scampi, scallops, lobster, spider crab and snow crab and mussels piled high on a plate, with them given plates of their own to use.

Joell was chatty and incredibly friendly, doing his best to inform and keep them entertained throughout. He had told them about how everything in the restaurant was freshly caught daily by fishermen to be prepared almost immediately and it certainly showed. Luna honed in on this topic almost immediately, having her own stories to tell about her father's days as a fisherman. On top of it all, they got to listen and clap along to Joell singing them a few songs to boot.

"Bravo! Bravo! Don't you think Celes ought to join in? A duet with you two would be amazing!" Luna exclaimed.

"Thank you so much, I appreciate your kind words. I didn't realise I would be serving such important people otherwise I would have went out of my way to prepare something more special," Joell said.

"Oh, there's no need for that. We don't want to be treated any different from anyone else who's coming here," Luna said. Before they could say anything else, a loud cry for help directed their attention to the shops where a woman was looking around restlessly. Her eyes and theirs met and soon she was scuttling over towards them.

"Please, you've got to help me. It's my son, Neil. He and our dog have suddenly gone missing. I've tried looking everywhere I could possibly think that he would go to—the neighbours, his friends' houses, nothing. Oh, I don't know what to do at the moment!"

"It's okay. We'll find your son, ma'am. Do you remember when you first noticed he was missing?" Sora asked.

"It was around the time I noticed that the dog had suddenly stopped barking so I'd say five minutes ago? The thing is I noticed the silence a while after it had stopped so I'm not sure when during that time he left his room," explained the movie, her eyes darting from Sora to Luna and back again in snappy motions.

"I'm sure he and your dog are okay, ma'am. We'll just have to ask around and hope that someone saw him," Sora said.

"Would you like a glass of water in the meanwhile, madam?" Joell asked, pulling up a chair from an empty table so she could sit down.

"Oh, yes, thank you," she said, fanning her face as she sat down.

"Alright, let's do our parts," Sora said, now looking to Luna.

"Right, if anything it'll be a nice work out after that amazing food!" Luna agreed. After telling Joell that their teacher would be paying for their meal, the duo set off down the streets of Corona, their stomachs filled though not by any means an obstacle in their determination to find the mother's son.

They stuck together rather than splitting apart as they made their way to the town's entrance, picking up on bits and pieces of information on the boy and his dog's whereabouts. Their information led them towards the gates of the city, and the woods across the bridge.

"And you didn't even try to stop him?" Luna snapped at the guard at the gate's entrance when he had told her that he had seen them pass through.

"A lot of kids go to the lake to mess around. I couldn't have known he'd have gone into the woods instead!" said the uptight guard.

"Okay, whatever, it's a done thing. We'll handle this from here," Sora told him.

"More kids in danger? I most certainly couldn't allow that!"

"Argh! He said the thing," Luna said. "Gee, and they say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. A shame no one ever takes it to heart."

"Well, I'm sure we could spend the entire night debating over whether we are or aren't ready but I know where I'd rather be so see ya!" Sora raised his hand in a somewhat mocking salute, slipped past the guard and set off down the bridge.

"Hey, wait for me!" Luna called, running after him.

"Wait! Stop! I… am not very good at my job, am I?" the guard's voice trailed off as he watched Sora and Luna head off into the darkness.

After entering the woods they began to call out for young Neil. They hoped at least that they wouldn't have to go too far from the capital to find him. The longer they lingered however, the more apparent it became that they would have to travel just a little bit farther out of their comfort zone.

A sound, low and growling, brought Luna closer to Sora's side and clinging onto his arms.

"What was that?" she asked. Was she… she was. She was actually shaking on the spot.

"My stomach… maybe," Sora decided to react playfully.

"It's not funny, Sora. Oh dear… they don't have any wolves around here, do they?" Luna asked. Just then, the snap of a twig soon brought her to her knees, uttering the words "Oh no, oh no, oh no" over and over again.

"Hmm, you think? Should we go check it out?" Sora asked with a grin.

"You enjoy my suffering way more than a good boyfriend should," Luna snapped in a low voice.

"Define _good_. Anyway, it's not like we can leave yet. We have to find- oh. Found him!" Sora grinned and looked in the direction where he had heard barking coming from.

"Good, let's just go and get out of here already. It's way too dark," Luna said, standing back up and showing off her slight pout. The two began jogging through the woods, their cone of vision limited only to what was made visible by Sora's illuminated Keyblade. Two lit Keyblades would probably have obscured their vision entirely.

Soon enough they began to seek a shadow in the distance. Sora called out Neil's name and the boy turned to look at them. Beside him was a Golden Retriever about half the size of the boy.

"Hey, your mother's worried sick about you. What happened?" Sora asked.

"It was Maya. I noticed she was gone when I looked out of my window and went after her. I managed to reach her before she got into the woods but it was like she was obsessed with tracking something down. I couldn't control her and before I knew, she ran right into the woods while barking like crazy. I don't really know what got into her," the boy explained. He scratched at the back of his then looked down to his companion with a lazy smile.

"Well… at least all's well that ends well. But next time this happens, and I hope there isn't a next time, make sure you tell someone. It's just too dangerous for someone your age to be out here at night, promise?" Luna warned, flicking her index finger up and down in between Neil's eyes. The boy nodded solemnly. Throwing a grin his way, Luna ruffled his hair before setting her sights on the way back.

"And _now_ we can get out of here. Can you hold on just a bit more, Luna, for all of us?" Sora teased.

"Why, I have no idea what you mean. Don't worry though. I'll protect you, Sora," Luna replied with faux sincerity.

"Good to know I have a guardian angel," Sora said. They were about to start on their journey back when Maya suddenly began barking again with a few intermittent growls both few and far between.

"Maya, calm down, girl! Calm down!" Neil tried to tell her.

"Wait. Stop, Neil," Sora said, holding out his arm. The dog's barking soon died down, but Sora hadn't really been listening to it in the first place. He had felt a chill throughout his body upon sensing a most formidable presence near them. What was probably most uncomfortable about this presence was that it had yet to make its move. Was it content with simply watching? Well, Sora certainly wasn't content with letting it do so.

His eyes closed, he listened in carefully to the extraneous sounds around him. After Pocahontas had taught him such a valuable skill, he had never really found a use for it outside of meditation.

There it was! A bending branch now amplified like setting foot in a minefield. He brought his Keyblade up and flashed it at the trees to see a strange beast, its hairs, if one could even call them that, flailing and bubbling like inky jet black pools. The beast seemed to slip off and fall to the ground like a sudden burst of water. Sora grabbed Maya and threw himself and the dog both out of the way while Luna managed to drag Neil away in time.

"That was a close one…" Sora whispered. He looked down at Maya to check that she was alright, gave her fur a quick rub and got up to look at the beast. It was as though by its very stare, it could make Sora's body stiff at an instant. He would be hard pressed to recall a time he had felt such malaise before. "Luna, take Neil and Maya and go."

"What, and let you fight alone? Sora, I-"

"Just do as I say!" he ordered harshly. Luna's mouth hung slightly open for a bit before looking to the boy. "Come on, let's go."

"But… will he be alright?" Neil asked.

"You might not know it looking at him but he's a bona fide hero," Luna assured him. The boy nodded and bid Maya to follow them. Sora waited for the three of them to clear the area and then assumed his battle stance.

The beast however, remained still. Despite falling like liquid only moments earlier, it had reshaped itself into a humanoid form. Its skin was pale, perhaps even gray. It's eyes, though a human's were an unusual piercing green. Its hair was long and dark, stopping just short of its waist.

Suddenly, its mouth curled into a smile, one that looked as though it was trying to perfectly replicate a human smile, and yet somehow managing to come off as unusual.

"So, _you_ are Sora," the beast said.

"Well shucks, I guess I'm more popular than I realized. Sorry the reciprocation doesn't go both ways. And who are you supposed to be?" Sora asked.

"I am what your kind would call a Wraith, but not of the ordinary variety. You could say that, like a virus, I sat in the realm of the dead a seedling, festering as I was exposed to… no, more like bombarded, with a variety of memories not my own. The pain of the dead became my pain, their kindling helped to stoke the fiery inferno I feel raging inside me even now. And much like a virus, I grew resistant to the very eco system which tried to contain me. You might even say I grew what you would call a conscience. And like that…" the beast snapped his fingers. "I emerged into a world of light, a voice for the unspeaking dead. Now I serve Master Janus, whose goals I find align closely with mine own."

"You're with Janus? Are you also in control of the other Wraith?" Sora asked.

"Very perceptive. We are anathema to the world. One day this world will die, but no need to worry. A new one will be born in its place, one in which mankind's despair, its burdens, shall be left behind on this scorched soil. Try as you might, you cannot avoid it. Run from it, hide from it… in the end, death awaits you, and I, Damos, shall be there to greet you at the finishing line."

"Could we just not do this? I'm still digesting here," Sora said.

"Then be sure to enjoy your last supper." Damos suddenly raised his hand, causing roots to sprout up from the ground heading straight for Sora. The Keyblade wielder ran forward and chopped through the roots on his way to Damos with ease. Once he reached him, he launched the beast into the air and trapped him in a quick aerial combo. Damos soon recovered mid-air and transformed his arm into sinewy flesh, his hand now resembling a monster's claw.

Damos swiped down, but Sora managed to guard in time and was pushed back down to the ground. Aiming his Keyblade back up quickly, Sora launched a trail of Ragnarok blasts at Damos. Damos tried to slap them away with his claw but they soon overwhelmed him and sent him slamming against a tree.

The beast slid down the tree like butter in a frying pan. Once he reached the ground, he stood back up and smiled.

"Glorious. You truly are the harbinger of destruction," Damos said. "But it's just not enough. I need more. More!"

"AAAAGH!" Sora cried, charging towards Damos who had his arms spread out. His Keyblade glowed a bright white from a brief second before slicing through Damos with Zantetsuken. The beast let out a gasp and stumbled backwards. Sora quickly spun around him and drove his Keyblade into Damos' stomach, the blade's length being lost within the beast. Sora pulled out and black ooze spurted out of Damos' stomach.

The beast slowly looked down at his pierced stomach, looked back up at Sora and then fell backwards like a plank of wood. Sora slowly eased up on his guard and inched closer to the fallen body, his heart pounding. He wasn't even sure why. It hadn't been a particularly strenuous fight in which he had to exert all of his energy, in fact, it had probably been one of his easiest.

But maybe it had been a warning from his own heart not to let his guard down. A while later, a bright light erupted from the beast's stomach and something appeared out of the gaping white maw. It was a hand. A hand that slowly became an arm, and then a head and a chest until a full body had emerged out of the corpse that was in front of him. Sora's eyes widened as he stared at two Damos'—one who was lying on the floor dead and the other looking ponderously as though he was experiencing life for the first time.

Sora could hear a crack as the beast craned his neck from side to side. "Perhaps you though it would be easy. Perhaps you took joy in your little victory, so I'm told it's the little victories in life that matter. In which case, the little victories over death must be the same, and so I will try not to disappoint. I'll keep coming again and again until you are fully satisfied. If you would rather run from death, I would give you the option to conquer it every time. Does that give you hope? Does that ease your fears? Because both you and I know that your time's almost up."

"Wha- what are you talking about?" Sora yelled, getting ready to attack again.

"A being from the realm of the dead does come with its own benefits. Coming back as I did just now is one of them. Another is that I can see how long someone has left. Would you like to know? So you can say your goodbyes in time? Just think how many people never even get to do something like that. It's practically a mercy," Damos said. "And perhaps also in knowing death may you learn to celebrate the grandeur of life… for what little of it you have left."

Sora's confusion turned into a snarl. "You… you trying to play mind games with me?"

"Maybe. Maybe not. I would like more than anything to be wrong. You have defied expectations many a time after all. Perhaps you are the one who can surprise me." No sooner had he finished speaking than a dark puddle had appeared beneath Damos' feet. "No need to try and find me, for I will always be with you."

"Stop!" Sora yelled and made for the Damos again. He swung his Keyblade but the beast had disappeared into the puddle before the Keyblade could reach.

Sora stood up straight and banished his Keyblade. "Dammit! What in the world was that all about?"

As he started walking back towards the town, Damos' words had creeped their way into Sora's mind where they were sure to stay for a long time like an itch he just couldn't scratch. Just what if that creature was right and he had seen Sora's fate?

No, it had to be a lie. He was overthinking things, something that wasn't very typical for him in the first place. The simplest explanation was that Damos had been trying to make Sora lose confidence in himself. One of his greatest strengths had always been his ability to defy expectations, and to make him question that would be a victory for Damos and Janus.

Besides, even if it were true he couldn't go yet. Not when he had someone he wanted to spend his life with. His hand found its way to his chest and he stopped. This was fear. He was afraid of losing his friends, of losing Luna. He had so many things he wanted to do with her, places he wanted them both to see. The thought of never being able to see her smile again scared him more than anything.

"Oh come on, stop it, you're acting like a right worrywart. It's a bit pathetic really," Sora mumbled to himself, shaking his head. Besides, there was a much more pressing matter to worry about. If that guy was associated with Janus, then there was no telling how much he knew about the location of the Wayfinders.

"Sora!"

Hearing Luna's voice in the distance, Sora shook himself out of his stupor and continued on through the forest. By the time he had reached her, he had remembered how to smile again.

"You okay? What happened to that thing?" Luna asked.

"That thing was a Wraith… and it got away. No idea if it'll come back either but we might want to let Neuge know. It told me it was working with Janus," Sora said.

Luna stopped in front of him with an astounded look on her face. "Wait, Wraith can talk now? What is even happening?"

"Not all of them. As far as I know it's just that one. It's special somehow. Where did Neil and Maya go?"

"I saw them back to the town entrance and then came straight back here," Luna explained, turning to face the direction Sora was walking in.

"I figured you'd do something like that. We're like glue you and I. Just really incredibly stretchy glue," Sora said.

"Mhm, like conjoined twins, would you say?" Luna suggested, leaning her head against his arms.

"No. No, that's just creepy," Sora said. He brought his hand around Luna's arm and with his thumb gently glided it up and down.

"You okay?"

Sora looked down at her. "You already asked that question."

"And you never answered. You seem kind of tense." Sora had feared this. He imagined if just about anyone had spent time with him, they would know when he was troubled and when he wasn't.

"You're overthinking things. It's just really cold out right now." Sora hopped on the spot a bit to emphasise this. He just hoped Luna would take his lie at face value and go along with it, even if she suspected it was lie.

"I… suppose it is cold. Let's get back to the castle then," Luna said. Sora could only nod and continue onward. It would be his luck that on a night where he had felt so alive, he could be reminded so easily of just how close death was.

* * *

 ** _Terrace, Dollis Heights_**

"What a view. You know, there used to be a time when it wasn't wrong to want things. Good old fashioned materialism. That was our time. Nowadays, they're all too soft. Be happy with what you got in life. As long as you have food, home and family, what else do you need? Yeah, sure, says the guy sitting high and mighty on his throne making some of that sweet jerry dough off the backs of peasants. Only reason anyone would tell you that is because their success is dependent on your failure. I tell you, if everyone just up and decided one day that they weren't gonna take crap from their superiors and seek their desires, the world would stop functioning."

Mari Seren looked to the boy who was talking to his friend. "Oscar, you think you ought to be saying that in front of me?"

"Haha, look who's in trouble now," Oscar's friend, Feroe, said with a cheeky grin.

Oscar flashed him an annoyed look before scrambling to defend himself. "I don't mean you, of course, ma'am, or Lord Irva. You've always taught us to stay true to ourselves, after all. I mean those who aren't in our position."

"Easy, soldier, I was kidding around. Besides, you might even have a point. The world only works if people play the parts that others expect them to play, not the ones that they want to play. The wheel of fortune… ain't it a bitch to play… should you choose to play it," Mari said.

"Well I say screw that! I didn't join Horus to become just some mook. I ain't talking about excessive greed either, just that it ain't wrong to indulge in what you want. Back in the old world I had this really nice bike, lime green, was a mountain bike. I'd ride it up the hill of my hometown every single day and I saw so many different things while doing so. I wouldn't have either if I'd listened to my ma who insisted that I didn't need one because we were living from pay check to pay check. Now, that's bike's gone and I miss it, but I still have fond memories of it and those are the things that keep me going. I'd rather be sinful and feel alive than play sainthood and feel like fodder to the fat guns," Oscar said.

"What a rousing speech. You've shed a tear from my eye," said another boy, pretending to weep as he entered the terrace from the building's door. The building itself was perhaps the most majestic of those within Dollis City. Its residents commonly referred to it as the capitol building, though formally its official name paid tribute to their first leader. Mari supposed it was yet another fine example of what Oscar had been talking about. Paying tribute to a single man with little mind to those who had helped put him in power.

"Oh to the dogs with you!" Oscar dismissed, rolling his eyes.

"No, really, I can't wait for your best-selling novel, _The Bike and I_. I'd read it. Wouldn't you, General?"

"I didn't realise I told you to abandon your post, Zafi," Mari said.

"I wouldn't do it if it weren't important, General. Lieutenant Caster has arrived, ma'am," Zafi, or Zafir to pretty much anyone else, told her. It was probably for the best that he kept his distance from her when telling her this piece of information, for Mari's relationship with June wasn't exactly the best.

"Oh, for the love of Horus! What is she DOING here?" Mari spun around to nearest person who happened to be within arms distance of her, namely Feroe, and punched him hard on the arm.

"Ow!" Feroe winced and rubbed at his arm viciously while Oscar let out a snort.

"Stay here and cover for me." Mari tipped her captain's cap downward, swiftly turned and left the balcony. Her strides were long and quick. She just wanted to get this out of the way with.

On her way towards the lobby, she passed through Union Hall, a hallway of the many great leaders who had taken office since the inception of the state. Her eyes caught one portrait in particular, a simpering smile on her face.

"How did you find the raft among a sea of the opposite sex?" Mari murmured. With an amused smile, she looked away and continued down the hall.

When she stepped foot outside, the bubbly sweetness displayed by June among her comrades was enough to make Mari want to go back inside and hurl on the polished wooden floor. Either way, it was too late to turn back now. June had noticed Mari before she could even do anything.

"Oh, Mariii~ you weren't thinking on running on little ole' me now were you?" June asked in a sweet voice.

"Actually, because you can't help but butt into other people's business, I'll have you know I was planning to bounce, probably not for long but just enough to make you wait as long as possible," Mari replied.

"Oh, Mari, I wish you could let your guard down around me just a teensy bit and maybe you'd see I'm not such a bad person," June said.

"Just a venomous snake then. Oh, I feel so much better," Mari said. "Anyway, why are you here?"

"That boy that's been causing trouble all over the place, Riku... he completely wrecked our operation in the Quartz Mines."

Mari couldn't help it. She laughed a hearty laugh. "Did he kick your ass as well?"

June crossed her arms and huffed. "Har-har, I'm glad someone's finding it funny. It's those stupid giants! Why did Irva even bother with them? They're not even smart enough to… to… tie their own shoes!"

"Sweetie, they don't wear shoes," said Mari in a calm and silky voice. The mock worry on her face soon changed to satisfaction. "But I can't say I have much of the same problem you do with them. He may not be as clever as Grendel, but he'll learn quick, just as Grendel did. Isn't that right, Fleshlumpeater?"

The giant in questioned turned to look at her and grunted before looking back to the captive he was standing guard over. Mari threw June an annoyed look and walked over to the giant. She raised the baton in her right hand and brought the cold metal against the giant's back. The giant yelled in pain and spun around to look at her.

"Don't take that tone with me. You'll address me as mistress. Now would you care to try that again?" Mari asked in a passive-aggressive tone.

"Yes, mistress. Ooh, I can't believe I is taking orders from a filthy snivelling hume. The disgrace!" Fleshlumpeater groaned.

"Not enough to stop complaining about it, clearly," Mari said, drumming her baton against her palm rhythmically. She was about to turn when she noticed just in time that the captive knelt on the ground was preparing to get up. She narrowly dodged out of the way of the man's grasp and watched as Fleshlumpeater grabbed the man by the head and slammed him into the ground. Rather than giving thanks, the giant received only another glare from Mari.

"Well done. You take your eyes of him for one second and you almost put my life in danger. Let go off him."

As the giant did so, she bent down and pushed the tip of her baton into the man's cheek. She looked down the line where all the other prisoners were being 'looked after' by the rest of her division.

"You thought you saw an opportunity so you took it, right? Have you got balls or have you got balls? June, what do you think? You know, since you're busting mine constantly," Mari said, looking to June.

"She's so petty, isn't she?" June said to the man on the ground with a shrug.

"Only for you, June-bug," Mari replied, putting on a sweet sickening smile, the best copy of June's that she could muster.

"You people make me sick. This city used to be one that was built to reward good men and women who played by the rules. If something didn't work for them, they would work to change it from within. You think all these people came from the same position in life? This was not an unfair city. Now with you crooks, I don't know what this city stands for anymore. It'll all gone right out the window now," the man yelled.

"Fair?" Mari uttered. She grabbed the man by the chin and brought him to look directly at her. "You want to talk fairness now? Let's talk about what's fair. You should be glad we're here. Where I come from, my life was lived in fear by lawless madmen who killed the spineless politicians the moment they didn't comply with them. They would flay them and gut them like a fish and then leave them hanging on public display for all to see. A message, warning anyone not to pry into their business. I hated them, but I detested those who were deterred so easily from action because it came at our expense. It was we, the civilians, who had to live through that hell, who had no one to rely on in our time of need.

"So, one day, I found out that my good for nothing father cheated on my mother and had an affair with another woman. The story probably would have ended there, if it was just any average woman. Instead, he just had to have picked the woman of one of the cartel's top members, not that he had known at the time. I imagine he must have figured something was up though around the time he noticed he was being followed to and from work. Oh, and I should add that my father is one of those spineless politicians I happened to be talking about earlier.

"Anyway, about a few weeks pass and I come home from working at the bakery to find my father being accosted by another man, a switchblade in his hand. As I recall, he was kind of holding it like this…" Mari took hold of the back of the man's head and brought him closer, holding the baton inward and pressing its cool metal against his neck. "It's typical gangster stuff. But back to the story, my mother looked on with concern etched on her face from the landing when I came in and it soon came together in mind what was happening as two and two often does. My father didn't really deserve my mother's pity, but she was always the forgiving subservient type. Heck, if she were standing here in my place, she'd probably let you go. But me? No Bueno.

"So after a rather lengthy session in which the cartel member grilled and even dehumanized my father, he looked to me and my mother as if noticing us for the first time. He walked towards us and grabbed my mother, dragging her back into the room where my father was. She screamed and protested, but he wouldn't listen. He pressed her against the table and began touching her up, all this in front of a man who could only stand slack-jawed and break down in tears. I, on the other hand, knew better. Somehow my body, even though I myself was crying and screaming, had found its way into the kitchen and had procured a knife. While he was too busy trying to one-up my father to notice, I stabbed the son of a bitch in the hip. I didn't stop there either. My anger at the unfairness of it all was too great for one stab, and so I did it again and again, even after I was sure that he was dead.

Mari let go off the man's head and stood up. "The thing is, I think with each stab it became less and less about my mother potentially being put up for human trafficking and just me trying to prove that I was above these madmen, that I could do what those who had power would never do. Naturally, what I had done had made my family targets. My father had gotten us tickets for the ferry where we could cross the border. It was just like him to run away from his problems. I wasn't thinking clearly. I felt, at the time, that I had been endowed with a new purpose in life. I could make my home a better place. So I would leave with my parents, to give them short-term peace of mind, but I'd return very soon and enact justice for those who had never had any of it.

"The moral of the story is that you think your city's fine because you've spent too much time trying to make your way to the top that you forgot about the people you stepped on to get there, or is that expenses scandal I've heard about around town all bogus? No matter how pure your intentions are on the way to top, the moment you realize you need to manipulate certain variables to make your way, it all goes downhill from there. If it wasn't this, it would be something else. It doesn't matter if you're still one of the good ones. No one in your position stays good for long. You've been made redundant."

Mari turned her back to him and walked away. June blew a whole load of air she had been keeping in and turned around to follow after Mari.

"Did you really have to tell him all that?" June asked.

Mari tipped her cap to conceal her eyes. "No. But who doesn't love a good bedtime story?"

* * *

 **A/N: The Beast (not to be confused with the furry one) is a character who will make more of an appearance on Riku's side of the story, serving as Janus' right hand man(monster?). Until then however, look forward to the confrontation between the Wayfinders and Horus and the final Disney world in Sora's story shortly (by which I mean hopefully in the coming month or two).**


	64. Something Worth Fighting For

**A/N: So consider this chapter, especially the first part, inspired by the recent Wreck-It Ralph trailers. You never really see Disney characters interacting with other characters outside of their respective films in Kingdom Hearts. Sometimes I like to wonder how different Kingdom Hearts would be if Disney allowed Square more freedoms like that but we're stuck with what we have for the foreseeable future. Still, it's a good thing that fanfics do what Square can't.**

* * *

Chapter 63

Something Worth Fighting For

 ** _Girls' Guest Room, Castle Corona_**

"Wooooow… Rapunzel, your new hair is beautiful." Cinderella carefully drew the comb across the silky smooth strands of Rapunzel's golden hair. Given its length, she wasn't about to retread on any parts she had already done any time soon.

"It goes all the way to the door. It looks so comfy I could just fall asleep on it," Aurora said, resting her head against some of it.

"Oh no you don't. This hair won't comb itself, you know," Cinderella replied. She looked back to Rapunzel. "Am I doing well so far? I admit I don't have much experience doing this. My stepmother asked me on a few occasions to comb my step sisters' hair, but theirs was too thick and I could never get it quite right. I had to settle with being called clumsy. In hindsight, I suspect my stepmother had already known this and had ordered me to do so in order to reinforce the idea that I was useless and make my life as miserable as possible."

"Oh, please, you are anything BUT, Ella. You're doing a great job, like you've done this so many times before already. I just can't believe some people would be so callous as to treat others like dirt or take advantage of them. The woman who raised me, my other mother, was the same. And I've thought about it for a long time, but despite all I went through her, I can't bring myself to hate her. She still raised me, you know?" Rapunzel said, tilting her head so she could look to the side.

"Life's too short to keep hate in our hearts. We all have amazing futures ahead of us and focusing on what happened a long time ago just isn't worth it," Jasmine said. She was leaning against the wall with her arms folded, watching Cinderella comb Rapunzel's hair. "Even when that person is a completely scumbag who wants you to marry him. Not gonna lie, I was kind of glad I got kidnapped by Riku instead, not that it was that poor boy's fault. Maleficent was pulling the strings."

"Not a boy anymore. It's strange to think that it was only a few years ago that we met those two. They're completely different people now, especially Riku. Talk about character arcs," Belle said.

"Character arcs?" Snow White repeated. She was plopped down on her own bed reading a book given to her by the three fairies on practicing magic.

"Yes, in every good book I've read there's a character who goes through a struggle. Depending on the character they either hit a rock bottom where things can't get any worse for them or they are at the apex, which may be reached by solipsism or being extremely egocentric. Then, an event happens that forces them to confront that situation head on and that's when their inflated or deflated value of themselves becomes levelled out. They learn a lesson, or in some cases, mainly the apex-type character, they suffer the repercussions."

"That sounds pretty amazing! I wish I had a character arc," Snow White replied, resting her head against her forearm.

"Well, no time to start like the present. You're all learning this magic business now, right? And to think if someone had told me before any of this that magic existed I would have laughed, and I have superpowers so you'd think it would be weird I'd be so close-minded," Helen said. "How is your training going so far anyway?"

"Ooh, not much, not much, just… this!" Snow White clicked her fingers and spark of light burst forth above her finger tips.

"Oh, wow! I'm so happy for you, Snow! I, uh, haven't been able to do anything yet…" Ariel said, hugging at her knees from the bed.

"I'm sure you will eventually, Ariel. It might just be easier for us because of our hearts. Practice does make perfect."

Ariel sighed and reached for her toes. "Easy for you to say, perhaps. Well, you're not wrong anyway."

"Just Snow subtly rubbing it in. Proof that not all people are created equal," Aya said, suddenly popping in through the slightly ajar door.

Snow grabbed a pillow on her bed and threw it at her. "I- I said no such thing! I don't think that at all!"

Aya closed the door before the pillow could hit her before opening it again. "I was only joking! Bless your pure hearts, you're so innocent!"

"Wanna prove that theory? Then get in the room," Jasmine taunted.

"Nah, I'm fine where I am, thanks. Do you guys know where Elsa is?" Aya asked.

"Probably not the same place she always isn't—here," Aurora said, rolling onto her stomach.

"She's a tricky one to put a finger on. A real lone wolf, which is strange because it felt like she was trying to make an effort to hang out with us a bit more," Rapunzel said. "I saw her by the lake at one point and asked her if she wanted to drop by. She said 'not today' in a really gloomy and despondent voice and just continued looking at the lake. I even offered to sit with her and talk about our problems but she said that it was embarrassing for her to be seen as such a sourpuss and that she wanted to be alone for a while."

"She said that? Today?" Aya asked.

Rapunzel nodded. "Yes, today."

Aya gave a solemn nod. Her mouth hung open for a while before finally speaking. "It's strange. Kairi, Mulan, Herc, Aladdin and I were just thinking about everything that happened with Commander Farron and Xanatos. Before they found him, Mulan and Herc saw Elsa running past them. She didn't even stop to say hello."

"You think she saw Lightning do it?" Cinderella asked, sitting bolt upright.

"Maybe, maybe not, but she knows something, I'm sure of it, and whether she likes it or not we're going to find out what that something is," Aya said.

* * *

 ** _Institute of Technology, San Fransokyo_**

" _Approval of the city's first superheroes, the Big Hero Six, has suffered a significant drop among the public following the recent bombing at Krei Tech and the closing of the San Fransokyo Bridge. In a survey conducted recently, sixty per cent were seen to express disapproval of the group's recent actions and conduct, a stark contrast to their forty three per cent disapproval rating previously. Pressure is mounting for a city-wide lawsuit against the superhero group over the damages inflicted on the city in the past few days. With elections for city hall at the end of the year, the topic of just how much flexibility groups like the Big Hero Six should have going forward seems like it will be unavoidable for the runners hoping to become mayor, including the current mayor himself who has voiced his unequivocal support for the group previously. Leading candidate, Nathalie Lee, who is slowly but surely catching up in polls to Mayor Carmiati, had this to say when posed the question to the fate of superheroes:_

" _We shouldn't even be humoring the question, to be honest. I don't doubt that the Big Hero Six have helped this city, back when our problems were a man in a mask trying to get the one up on someone for what happened in the past. Now? It's increasingly clear that the dangers have only gotten worse due to their presence. Their supposed 'safety net' is really only an invitation to say 'Come, try to storm these gates and see what happens'. It's playing with the safety of the city. I mean a giant robot, the Loch Ness Monster, what's next? Do we want to know?_ "

The screen turned black and Edna Mode gave an annoyed look, turning around to face Hiro. "Well that wasn't very nice now was it? I was watching that. These television sets are better than the ones back home. The quality is pristine and the screen is so flat. How do you do it?"

"Er, you don't have HD TVs? They're pretty common around here. Wait, that doesn't matter right now. It's all garbage!" Hiro kicked at the air and looked to Baymax. "What else were we supposed to do? Let those things destroy the city? Or do they think the police can do a better job?"

"Oh, where have I heard all this before?" Edna pondered sarcastically. "It really amazes me how easily people remember the bad parts to the good, it really does. Oh, will you quit dawdling and hand me the blow torch! We don't have all day, do we."

"Oh, sorry!" Hiro quickly rushed over to the workbench and grabbed the appropriate tool, taking it over to Edna. "It's just that… you know, when we decided to make this thing permanent, we were doing it in honor of my brother. But what's even the point when we're hated for doing it?"

"I don't understand! You mentioned wanting to honor your brother and then you question why you should help people when you're hated by them, so which is it?" Edna said. She finished handling the blowtorch and set it down. Raising her helmet, she looked back at Hiro expectantly. "Well? Which is it?"

"No, you're right. Of course you're right, but it doesn't really mean much if we're getting sued for it! I mean, Fred's family could probably cover the costs but I wouldn't wish that on them."

"Oh, to be sure. And then if you pay up there's nothing to stop them from taking advantage of you in the future. Put simply, you're screwed," Edna said.

"Oh. Well thanks for the confidence," Hiro said.

"You're welcome- HEY! No touching!" Edna slapped Baymax's hand away from the table as he tried to pick up the blowtorch.

The laboratory door slid open and the first person to step in was Enna Kros wearing a creamy light colored blouse with a black skirt, white thigh high boots and sunglasses. Behind her was a mouse only half her height, wearing an elegant pink ball gown and a golden tiara on her head, and a duck with a top hat, cane and royal blue jacket.

"How do I look? Fabulous? This place just has too many good stores. It's a wonder you San Fransokyians are productive at all," Enna said, posing for them. She resumed her normal stature and centered her attention on Edna. "Is everything to your liking?"

"Not bad, not bad. It's almost as good as my own," Edna replied.

"Ah, you can open up to us. Just a little concession. We won't tell, we promise," Enna teased. "I jest. I can tell from how you carry yourself how prideful you are about these things. Anyway, meet the team who will be assisting you two with your inventions. Your highness, you can take it from here."

"Thank you, Enna," Queen Minnie gave her a quick bow before looking down at her feet as two chipmunks ran past her. "These two have a great amount of experience in engineering, especially with Gummi blocks."

"Nice to meet ya! Here's Chip!"

"And Dale!"

"Hope we get along!" The two chipmunks ended in unison.

"Woah! Never seen talking chipmunks before. Or mice for that matter. Is it a voice chip that detects electrical signals attached to sensors in the brain or something?" Hiro asked.

"What, you mean your chipmunks don't talk? You better not be oppressing them!" Chip yelled.

"And here's the person who will be funding your operations," Minnie said, stepping aside to allow the duck through.

"Aye, Scrooge McDuck at your service. I admit, when Minnie first approached me I was sceptical. Now? I still am but with the world the way it is today, there's countless opportunities for expanding the bus-er I mean exposing the beautiful young minds to new horizons. Now how could I pass up a chance like that, eh?" Scrooge said, promptly changing his tune when he felt Minnie's feet digging into his own.

"Wonderful. I've always wanted a motley crew of my own. Though I do work better alone, if you're offering them to me it would hardly be appropriate of me to refuse. Welcome aboard. Just don't get in my way." Edna's tone shifted from amicable to serious with her warning. Then, she pulled down her welding helmet and picked up the blowtorch to resume where she had left off.

"So is everything going smoothly? I know Neuge and Yen Sid gave you a tight deadline and it's not entirely fair to you but-"

"Oh, hush, darling. I've had far worse. As long as my little assistant over there keeps himself focused on his work and not the need to stroke his superhero ego I think we'll do splendidly," Edna said.

"Stroke his what now?" Minnie asked confused.

"Oh, he and his robot friend over there are superheroes. Part of a team called the Big Hero Six, isn't that right?" Enna explained.

"Bah, kids these days! Running around in their little undy-wundies playing cops n' robbers… so different to the days of working in the mines, scrounging by for a beggar's pay," Scrooge reminisced. "I mean, just what do they put in you kids' food these days?"

"Oh, will you stop talking about the past for even just one day?" Minnie snapped at him. She cleared her throat and reassumed her calm demeanor. "Is there a problem, young man?"

"It's Hiro, and it's just something I saw on the news. It's not really important right now-"

"The whole city is up in flame at the destruction over the past few days and blame him and his friends for it," Edna cut in, turning off the flame tool momentarily to speak. "They could get sued, but in my experience they won't stop there. My guess is that they'll let them operate as long as they surrender their autonomy. Make no mistake, to the politicians this isn't about the damages to the city. That's simply a means to an end."

"So the approval rating going down… you think that's to put pressure on us?" Hiro asked.

"Bingo."

"Agh, I know I shouldn't be focusing on it too much but I do wish there was a way to counter all that negative stuff about us. To show that we really do just want to help," Hiro said.

Enna placed her index finger on the side of her lip and tilted her head. Eventually she snapped her fingers and beamed at him.

"I think I know someone who can help."

* * *

 ** _The Meeting Room, Corona Castle_**

Yen Sid sat opposite as Sora retold of his and Luna's encounter in the forest with Janus' lackey, mentions of anything to do with Sora dying excluded of course from both the old sage's and Luna's ears. Truth be told, Sora would rather have not talked about the experience at all. Hearing the beast's words had only served to anger him. Or perhaps he couldn't escape it, but he at least wanted someone he could talk about it with. He didn't want Luna to worry so she was out of the question.

As for Yen Sid, maybe that wasn't out of the question. Maybe he should put aside his pride after everything that had happened between them, but it still felt weird to consult the wizard on something like this. Ultimately, he knew he was worrying about nothing but being told in some prophetic way that he would die soon wasn't exactly something he could just get out of his mind either. He thought of Yeul quickly. If she didn't know what to do, at the very least just confiding in her was enough.

"Well, thank you for telling me. Though this is a very grave matter I'm afraid logistics involving relocating our base would be quite complicated, especially with moving forward to take back Radiant Garden within the week," Yen Sid said.

"What about Disney Castle?" Luna asked.

"Still undergoing repairs after it was invaded by Maleficent. Besides, I am afraid this type of evil cannot be fended off by the protections of Disney Castle. The town itself would also still be at risk, which needs to be factored into our relocation," Yen Sid said. "Though I do agree that we need to leave soon. We've stayed our welcome longer than need be, especially at the expense of the security of our most gracious hosts."

"Not to mention Disney Castle would probably be the first place they'd look for us, I guess," Luna said. "It does scream pretty obvious."

A lightbulb went off inside Sora's head and he looked to Luna. "There is somewhere that might work—Akuma Island. That's the place where we found Xanatos hiding out in San Fransokyo. It was destroyed a long time ago but thankfully Xanatos fixed the place up for us. I say we take it for ourselves. Not like he'll be needing it anymore anyway."

"That was kind of dark but I agree," Luna said.

"Then we'll see that preparations are made haste. Our mission remains the liberation of Radiant Garden, not the eradication of Horus. Regardless of whether this happens to result in significantly limiting their mobility, Neuge and I are quite confident that whatever is left of Horus will move to retaliate as soon as possible. After this operation we cannot stay here for long or we risk endangering the people of Corona," Yen Sid said. He stood up and smiled at them. "For now, the both of you must rest. You've had both had a long day."

The two teens nodded and were about to leave when they suddenly noticed Yen Sid keeling over.

"Hey! Are you okay?" Sora asked after he and Luna arrived at the sage's side. Yen Sid let out a few coughs and looked up at them, beads of sweat visible on his face.

"I… just felt dizzy for a moment. I fear that… age is… is finally getting to me," he said with some difficulty. It had been the frailest that Sora had ever seen the man, something that scared him. In his mind he had always seen Yen Sid as the calm and collected figure who did his best to provide the voice of reason even when emotions ran high.

"Oh, don't give me that, gramps. I think you're more tired than we are," Sora said, lifting Yen Sid up with Luna.

Luna threw Sora a look but Yen Sid placed a hand on both their shoulders. "No, he's right. Rest is what I-"—cough cough—"Sorry. Rest is what I need."

"Maybe some water too?" Luna offered.

"No," –cough cough—"No, that's fine. To be quite honest, it's already somewhat embarrassing having you see me in this kind of position. Good thing there's no one around."

Sora assumed that was Yen Sid's attempt at a joke. He should have laughed just to make things less awkward but seeing the man in such an unprecedented position threw him completely off balance. The same seemed to be the case for Luna.

"You'll be fine getting to your room then? I don't really know where it is," Luna said.

Yen Sid nodded. "I don't live here after all. Now if you would back up a tad. I can't have you getting mixed up in the process."

Sora and Luna did as they were instructed and watched as Yen Sid disappeared, leaving behind a trail of white light and sparkles that eventually disappeared into the air.

"You think he'll be okay? I'm not so sure it's just age. I mean, he's seemed pretty well before this, hasn't he?" Luna asked. "And how long has he been like this? I didn't look like he was surprised when it happened. Hey, I know he probably doesn't want to let anyone else know but do you think we should tell Neuge at the very least?"

"I… think we should respect his wishes," Sora said. "I mean, it's probably just from working too hard or something like that, right? Not even the great Yen Sid is exempt from needing to rest every once in a while and I wouldn't want to blow something out of proportion just for it to end up being nothing."

"Aw, so you care about him now. It wasn't so long ago that you couldn't stand to be in the same room as him."

Sora shrugged. "There are bigger fish to fry. Anyway, we probably should take his advice and get some sleep. I have a feeling tomorrow's going to be a long day."

Leaving the large room, the ventured down quiet, empty halls. Most, if not all, of the servants would be in their rooms or on their way to them at the very least and while traversing down these lonesome hallways provided privacy when needed, it probably was often more jarring to find nobody walking around than it was with them.

They soon reached the particular wing which housed the dormitories, with the girls' guest rooms to the left and mens' on the right. Standing in between these two paths, Sora leaned in and kissed Luna on the forehead.

"You know, forest and evil monster excluded, I really want to do that again," Luna said. "It's those moments I live for. Being free from thought from anything to do with heart pieces or saving the world. I've said before that I wanted to see the stars but none of it really matters if you aren't with me."

"Bah, I think you'd do pretty great at life even without me," Sora dismissed.

"Somehow, I doubt it-"

"Please don't say that. You just need to believe in yourself and have the confidence to take the first step," Sora said. There was a pause momentarily before he added with a grin, "Besides, you don't have to get all sappy with me. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. Let's set the next date for after we take back Radiant Garden."

"Good. You promised," Luna said. She gave him a quick kiss on the lips and then skipped off down the hallway. Sora watched her turn the corner, but rather than turning the opposite direction, he left by the doors they had come from. He wasn't ready to fall asleep just yet.

Meanwhile, as Luna was walking down the hallway to the room, she was taken by complete surprise as the second door she passed on her way there opened and she was dragged in by Sarah Byrne.

"Hey, what's this all about?" Luna asked.

"Sorry. I sensed you were nearby. I need to show you something," Sarah said, returning to her bed. Next to hers was Hattie lying in her own, seemingly fast asleep and next to that, Vera and the rest of the Brynhildr crew.

"Sensed, huh? Well ignoring that, where did you get that laptop from? Wait, isn't that-"

"Eleftheria's, yes," Sarah quickly answered Luna's question. She turned the laptop around to show Luna the screen. "I asked if I could borrow it. Remember how I said I was going to think of a way to help Ralph and Vanellope? Well, voila! Please, please, keeps your words of appreciation to 140 characters or less."

Luna drew close to the screen and looked down to see a whole script of what, to her at least, seemed like a meaningless string of characters. She did know what it was however, and the power contained with this 'meaningless' script. She had watched a fair amount of movies that had hacking in them anyway to know that it was code.

"How long did this take you to write?" Luna asked.

"I started the moment we arrived here. Since I'm a shut-in, it's pretty easy to find something to commit yourself to for an entire day," Sarah said.

"I hope you ate something at least," Luna said.

"Please, Luna, I don't run on just oxygen, you know? Unfortunately I don't have my energy drinks so I had to rely on drugs. Anyway-"

"What?"

"I kid, I kid. Seriously, what even is a joke anymore? Anyway, let's not concern ourselves with what I did and did not eat and let's skip to how this shebang works, capiche? You know that Cloud we had to go through to get to Ralph's game? Well, I figured if I could recreate those conditions, I could create a cloud server which better integrates not just Fix-It Felix and Sugar Rush but all games and make it so that things are more lax when it comes to characters from different games interacting with one another. It won't be just another Cloud server, but a Game Lobby. So everything's set up and ready, but the only thing missing is the actual Cloud Server itself. I know a lot of hard drives and a place with good internet to host them. This place… has neither."

"Even so, you've done an amazing job, Sarah. Thanks a bunch," Luna said, drawing her into a hug. Sarah seemed unsure of where to put her arms and eventually just decided to leave them at her side.

"Please let go off me. I said I don't _just_ need oxygen, I never said I didn't need it at all," Sarah croaked after a few seconds.

"Oh, sorry. My Aunt Kit does the same thing. Guess I took it on as a habit," Luna told her as she let go.

"Well, please don't infect me. Anyway, just wanted to let you know how far I've come," Sarah said.

"To be honest, I'm surprised you even did something so soon. Ralph and Vanellope are going to be so happy," Luna said. She sat down on the bed and looked over to Hattie before looking back at Sarah. "I want to ask you something. How much do you know about Irva Torvald? How likely is this operation to succeed?"

It was Vera who answered the question however. "You want us to be honest with you? Even if we were actually organized and the Lunarians decided to help us after everything that's happened, Torvald is still a renowned strategist. Like any good leader, he can change his tactics to suit the type of ground he fights on. This is going to be a fight on at least two fronts and you can't possibly expect them to be fought the same way. He'll be versatile and most importantly unpredictable. With the way we are right now, we'll be lucky to be able to even take advantage of the holes they leave in their defences."

"So not good then. That's just what I wanted to hear. So, do you think we should hold off on an attack then?" Luna asked.

"No. It's either you storm their gates or they storm yours and seeing the power they have at their disposal, do you really think the latter is a good idea?"

"If you're going to die, you might as well die trying…" Hattie's muffled voice came as she stirred her head against her pillow. "Wish I could care."

Luna leaned forward and placed a hand on Hattie's leg. "Are you okay, Hattie?"

"She's been like this ever since she came back from the Lunarians hideout. Blames herself for what happened," Delita said.

"She's being ridiculous. Nothing would have changed regardless of whether she had kept her big mouth shut or not," Sarah said.

"Sarah…" Avery started, but Sarah cut in quickly.

"No, I was in this room the entire time along with her and I had to put up with her moaning and sulking. I have a right to complain!"

"Not like anyone forced you to stay in this room," Antonin murmured, only for Sarah to throw him a glare.

"Come on, Hattie. I know I haven't known you for too long but this doesn't seem like the kind of thing you'd stay upset about for long," Luna said.

"Because I've never been in the position where something I said got a third of my crew killed," Hattie said.

"Good thing it wasn't more then, otherwise you would have really screwed things up with that big mouth," Sarah muttered.

"Sarah, now is really not the time!" Vera chided.

"Like there ever is!" Sarah shot back.

"Oh, will you just both be quiet!" Luna yelled at them. She pursed her lips and looked to the wall, fearing that someone in another room might have heard her. When she was certain everything was clear she looked at Hattie. "Unfortunately, if your sisters aren't able to get you out of your rut I doubt I'll be any better at it. All I can say is that you need to ask yourself a question—who needs you more, the people you couldn't save or the people you still can? Because the answer you find determines whether you're a leader or not."

She gave Hattie a final pat on the leg, stood up and stretched. "And with that, I am out! Oh dear, now I'm going to keep yawning until I get to bed."

"Have a goodnight, Luna. Oh, and about Irva Torvald…" Vera said as Luna reached the door. The brunette half turned to look at Vera. "He's still just a man. Don't let my words discourage you from dreaming."

Luna smiled. "I never stopped, even for a second. We have some pretty amazing people who can pull off the impossible."

* * *

Sora's restlessness had taken him outside of the castle, all the way to the lake whose still water reflected the moon's precious light. He was reminded of the lake he and Luna had found in Radiant Garden. Their own secret place.

He looked down an found a pebble with as smooth a surface as possible. He weighed it a bit in his hand and then chucked it across the lake. It skipped a few times. One. Two. Three. And from that point on became lost somewhere in the darkness of it all. Sora hadn't been looking anyway. His attention was focused on something else.

On the other side of the shoreline was the outline of another person in the distance. He pressed the tips of his digits against his pocket in case he needed to summon quickly and walked over towards them. He didn't let his guard down entirely until he was able to make out who it was. The periwinkle blue dress and the platinum blonde hair identified her as Elsa before he even got the chance to see her face.

Sora relaxed a bit and instead slipped his hands into his pockets. "Is there room for more than one on Reflective Lake?"

"Of course. Please, sit down," Elsa said with a faint smile. "Reflective Lake… I like the name."

"Right? Cause we're both reflecting on things and the water reflects-"

"I get it," Elsa said, putting her hand up to cut him off.

"Right," Sora said in a low voice as he looked back at the lake. The two simply watched the view for a while in complete silence. The lights of the town and castle brought with them a soft glow that basked its radiance on certain parts of the lake.

"It's beautiful." Elsa seemed to share these sentiments. "I wish I could say something like it looks lovely underneath the starlit sky but I can't. No one can anymore. Do you think it's an omen? Like, the end of the world?"

"Nah. Well, I hope not. Don't worry, they'll be back," Sora answered as coolly as possible. There was a further silence as Sora thought of something else to say. "So, what's on your mind? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to of course but I figure if we can help each other, it would be a good start to solving our problems."

"Well, maybe it's easy for you to divulge your secrets like that but not for me," Elsa said, rubbing her arm. "How could I even be sure that you'd keep it a secret? I don't even know you that well."

"You can trust me. I'm like the best secret keeper in the world." Sora grinned and thumped his chest proudly.

Elsa let out chuckle. "What was that about?"

"I was just remembering something funny. Anyway, you know what? You're right. We don't really know each other. I guess I'll start. I might die soon," Sora said.

"Woah! That was way too heavy all of a sudden. I thought we were going to start at the beginning, not the end then make our way backwards," Elsa said, alarmed by Sora's forwardness.

"I mean, is there really much to say about me that you probably haven't heard from someone at this point? But yeah, that's my secret. Well, not much of a secret. There's no doubt I'm obviously going to die someday but the way this prophecy and a certain recent encounter shaped things, it's going to be sooner than I expect it to be. IF it's all true," Sora said.

"Wait, a prophecy?" Elsa asked.

"Yeah, crazy, isn't it? That's my life now. Having a dead girl's words hanging over my head. And though I know in my heart that things like that aren't set in stone, even Yeul said that, I still don't know which paths to take to avoid it, or whether she was just trying to offer me some comfort. What do you think?"

"The thing is if you live your life looking over your shoulder the entire time, you'll never get anywhere. Isn't every day a head in the lion's mouth kind of scenario for you anyway?" Elsa asked.

"You'd think I'd be used to it. If anything I think… I think I may have done this one too many times that if you told me that this was it I wouldn't believe you," Sora said. He sniffled and looked up to the sky. "Boy, does it get nippy at night. I always liked word—nippy. It's a funny word… I'm not ready yet. I might not know which path death lies down but I'll fight as hard as I can to stay around for a good while to come. My friends need me and I need them. It's that simple. I know. If it's so simple, then why are you worrying so much over it. Isn't that the question."

"I wasn't going to say that actually. On the contrary, it proves that you're still human. It might be easy to say you don't fear death but I think innately, it's built into all of us. It's how we stay alive. I don't think there's an easy answer here, but I do know that you shouldn't act as if you don't fear it as a form of escapism. You don't know what will happen so there's no point fussing over that kind of question. The only thing you can do is live to make the life you have now the best it can be," Elsa said. "Actually, my parents died when I was young and that kind of question has been on my mind every now and then. If they had returned from their voyage, I would have finished training to control my powers and everything would have gone back to the way it was. Instead, I missed out on my own parents' funeral because I couldn't risk putting anyone else in danger. Even after their deaths, I tried to honor their memory by doing my best to practice every day."

"I can't imagine it was easy," Sora said.

Elsa nodded. "It wasn't. My fundamental lack of societal connections with anyone outside of formal conversations with the servants, not even my own sister, saw that I was constantly miserable. I had no one to praise me when I did well or encourage me when I lacked motivation. And eventually, I just stopped. My chances of ever connecting with my sister, let alone anyone on the outside, diminished. I dedicated myself to private tutoring… isn't this weird that we've suddenly shifted the conversation to me?"

"No, please, go ahead. It's fascinating, in an unfortunate way," Sora said.

"Well, since I've already started… Do you know what happens to children like Elsa and I who go to public school? I remember asking my parents one day to take me to one because I'd always wanted to see what one was like. Now thinking about it, I don't think I had what you could call a true experience at all. In the limited time I spent there, not once was I asked a single question. I came to realise it was because I couldn't be shown to be wrong. If I were, it would risk embarrassing the family. Even as a child, I was a figurehead first and a person second. Little wonder I ended up in Maleficent's clutches. She knows how to prey on other people's weaknesses. She offered to help me control my powers and like the blind fool I was, I accepted it because she was the only one who seemed to care about me. I'm under no illusions now that she was just using me."

"But she did help you to control your powers? Maybe not for the best of intentions but she did help, so I guess that's something," Sora said. "Also it's not like had anyone to turn to. You probably wanted to scream for help, but you figured it wasn't something a future queen like you ought to do. Stuck between two halves of what you wanted to do and what you should do. It was probably tearing you apart inside. Under your circumstances, it's hard to fault you for what you did. What matters is that you're out of it now and surrounded by people who care for you."

"I wonder if that's true. If the darkness hasn't found a way to stay inside my heart," Elsa said.

"What do you mean?" Sora asked.

"Promise me you won't tell anyone. I just need time to figure things out," Elsa said, turning away from the water to look at him.

"Of course I promise. What is it, Elsa?"

"I…" Elsa paused, took a deep breath and continued. "I was the one who killed Xanatos."

Sora pursed his lips and looked away from Elsa to the lake. "Ah."

"'Ah'? Is that all you have to say?"

"I mean, I kind of suspected that Lightning wasn't the one who did it anyway. It just didn't seem like her to be so careless unless she was trying to cover something up," Sora explained.

"Wait, General Farron? What did General Farron do?" Elsa asked.

"Wait, then you didn't… oh, I see what's going on here. She never told you what she was going to do?" Sora asked.

"No. After she saw me she told me that she would handle things and that I should leave, so I did. I was in bed for the rest of the day just crying to myself. I did find it a bit strange after I calmed down that no one had come to get me. I figured with that stupid ice sticking out of him everyone would have easily figured out it was me," Elsa said.

"And here I thought Lightning did a pretty tacky job but if she was trying to cover for you then she actually did exactly what she needed to," Sora said. "Didn't expect this from her of all people but I guess you can never really know someone. You didn't know each other before you came here, did you?"

"No, this is the first time we've met and we've barely talked outside of a few times where we talked about family," Elsa said. "I can't let her take the fall for me though. I just can't. If I need to be punished… so be it. I don't know if I can trust myself anymore anyway."

"I don't know about that but… maybe it would help if you told me what happened exactly. What did he say to you?" Sora asked.

"He… threatened Anna. Told me I was at my most powerful when I knew only heartache. He said that he was confident things would go in his favor and that once he got out, he'd target my sister. Something snapped within me. I can't say I was entirely aware of what I was doing either. One moment he seemed fine and in control, the next he was gasping for breath and on the ground. I was a fool for even believing him. No, not even that. I was a fool for not believing in you all. I chose my own hatred and fear of a single man over believing that you could put him away. I'm sorry. I just feel like I'm being an inconvenience at this point."

Sora watched as Elsa buried her head in her hands. He stood up and looked at her. "Is that alright with you?"

Elsa rubbed her eyes and looked at him in confusion. "Sorry?"

"If you're willing to accept that weakness then that's fine. I'll look the other way and you can go home back to your sister. Your life will continue like before. You'll be the none the wiser to anything that happens outside of your kingdom. That's what you want, right?" Sora challenged, all the while keeping a calm demeanour throughout. "Except that it isn't. You're afraid of finding out about yourself, but you want to find an identity all the same. Life isn't about picking and choosing the parts you like or even the parts you want others to remember you by. Life is all just a cycle of mistakes and corrections anyway. That's one thing I took from school and I think it's one thing you don't understand because you lived your whole life believing that mistakes were wrong and that you weren't allowed to make them. Don't take this the wrong way but I'm going to be honest here against my better judgement—your parents did a pretty terrible job raising you," Sora said.

Elsa let out a small chuckle. "It's actually quite rejuvenating, hearing someone criticise my parents."

"Well, glad I'm not gonna get my head chopped off for that. Anyway, my point is that as long as you don't define who you are by those mistakes, you shouldn't be afraid of making them. I don't personally think the darkness in your heart made you do what you did. Actually, if anything, it was probably your love for your sister. I'm not saying that justifies what you did, but if you want to fight this fear that lies deep inside you, you need to believe in something."

"Something to believe in? Like what?" Elsa asked.

"I couldn't say. You have to be the one who finds it. But once you do, fight to protect it so that later down the line, you can feel pride when you share what you believe in with those you love. If you want to stop being an inconvenience, that's the first step," Sora said.

"I see. Is living to keep my people safe not enough of something to fight for?" Elsa asked.

"I mean, it could be, but it's kind of typical, isn't it? Go wild. I won't even blame you if you're selfish," Sora said.

"Then I'll need to think on it some more, but I do know where I want to be right now. And after I've apologized to her, tomorrow I'll admit everything. That's the first step to finding myself," Elsa said. She stood up and held out of her hand to him. Sora looked slightly confused but took it into his own. Elsa nodded as if confirming something with herself. "This is something I could never really do before for fear of hurting someone. But now I can, I want to cherish moments like these for as long as I can."

Sora grinned and embraced her hand more confidently. If it could give her even the slightest bit of confidence, the slightest bit of hope that there was a future for her among them, Sora wanted to help her see that by any means possible. Xanatos was right that Elsa was powerful, but that was in spite of heartache, not because of it.

"So do you have something you're fighting for, Sora?" Elsa asked.

Sora smiled at her then looked skywards. "Right now? Probably the future where you can say this lake looks lovely underneath the starlit sky."

* * *

 **A/N: Like that. Having those characters crossover is a pretty fun thing to do. Let it happen, Disney. Let it happen. Anyway, next chapter will be a bit more on the Big Hero 6 because I like stalling from writing any sort of resolution whatsoever to this conflict and the final days of preparation for Sora, Luna, Kairi and the others before their big battle. It's an awful lot to cover so hopefully I'll be able to get it out by next week. If it's this week even better but... no promises.**


	65. The Gathering

**A/N: Yeah, so that KH3 box art sure is a real looker, huh? Strange to think that we're so close to the game's release now. Anyway, the reason this chapter was delayed... not gonna lie, I was busy playing a little game called Marvel's (Can't forget the Marvel) Spider-Man. It's pretty great. Anyway, I'm finished with that so back to this. Another game called Valkyria Chronicles 4 is totally not gonna take my attention away from this in a little bit. Totally not.**

* * *

Chapter 64

The Gathering

Daylight broke and Elsa was already up on her feet, her heart heavy with regret but also a resolve to set things right. The first order of business for her was heading for the jail cells where a certain rose haired warrior awaited her. More than anything, she supposed she wanted, no, needed to find out why Lightning had taken the blame for her.

Because it was so early in the morning, Elsa didn't need to worry being seen by anyone as she made her way to the foyer and down the stairs to the basement level. She thought she would have enough time to prepare what she was going to say before she arrived, and at first she had been pretty sure she had figured out everything she wanted to say, but everything seemed to just fall apart when Lightning's sleeping body came into view.

It was truly amazing, to Elsa at least, how the most hardened people with the roughest edges could seem entirely different when vulnerable and at peace as Lightning was now. Perhaps she had gone to sleep with a strange satisfaction of having protected someone, even at the expense of having to spend her time surrounded by dingy walls such as these.

She placed her hand through the bars and spread out her palm, casting a cold wind of ice crystals that evaporated above Lightning. A shiver ran down Lightning's body and her eyes opened, her body bolting upright. She shot a cold glance towards the bars before eventually easing up upon seeing Elsa.

"Maybe try just calling next time? What time is it anyway? I never thought not being able to tell whether it was day or night could be so jarring," Lightning said.

"It's six in the morning. I apologize for waking you but I just wanted to let you know that it's alright. You don't have to try and hide it anymore," Elsa said.

"What are you talking about?" Lightning asked, blinking rapidly as she tried to recover from her disrupted sleep.

"I'm going to turn myself in. I was the one who killed David Xanatos after all. Not you," Elsa replied, as though she were making a formal address.

"What the hell? Why can't you just let it be?" Lightning asked.

"Because I never agreed to it. And they all need you. You're a good person, command- Lightning. There's no reason to pretend you aren't." Elsa walked closer to the bars and placed her hand around them. "But before I turn myself in, I want to know why you did it. Why would you put everything you have at risk just to protect some girl you've never met before?"

"Do I need a reason?" Lightning asked, eyeing her from the corner of her left eye. Her predominant focus was on the wall in front of her. "What matters is that I'm in here and you're out there. Make the most out of what you have and let this self-sanctimonious display go."

"I won't. I won't let an innocent person be punished for my mistakes. I'm not afraid Lightning. I know I made a mistake. And I know in my heart that the first step to moving forward is admitting that guilt," Elsa said. "You can try to stop me, but last I checked you put yourself behind bars. Now please… tell me why you covered for me?"

Lightning stood up and folded her arms, glaring at Elsa. "And what would that change?"

"Nothing, save for feeding my curiosity," Elsa admitted.

Lightning stopped swaying about, but kept her arms folded as she walked towards the cell. "Because I often see myself in you. My mistakes. My fears. The veneer I use to shield myself from hurt… I didn't need to know you long enough to feel like I've known you most my life. And of course us both having nothing but our sisters as family. Well, just you now anyway."

"Commander…" Elsa murmured, looking down at the floor in her effort to conceal a small smile.

"Claire."

Elsa looked back up. "Sorry?"

"My name. Don't tell anyone I told you that or I'll haunt you in the afterlife."

"Well… thank you for being honest with me, Claire. I can't imagine why you chose Lightning though. I think Claire suits you just fine," Elsa said. "Well, at least now I know. I can turn myself in without leaving any questions unanswered."  
Lightning closed her eyes for a moment and then opened them with a sigh. "Elsa, I-"

But Elsa would have none of it and waved her hand to stop Lightning. "Don't feel sorry for me. Maybe I should be thanking you. I don't know whether I'd be doing this or not if you hadn't done what you did. I don't see it as a punishment. Not entirely."

* * *

The leaves rustled, each individual one tickling the air in different angles. As Sora stepped foot on her residence, he could feel his heartbeat grow faster. And yet, he was hesitant to take the first steps. The world seemed to curve around him as though by making this very decision he held the sky itself on his shoulders.

He tilted his head slightly and looked from the door of Yeul's house upwards to the windows at the top. Her house was like something out of a fairy tale, the kind you would randomly stumble across in the woods. Aside from the moss covered gray tiles that lined the roof, everything else seemed perfectly neat. Unmarred.

Finally, he decided to take the first step. His hand found itself on the blue gate and, with a hard push, stepped into the compound. He was immediately treated to the lovely sight of a wide array of flowers from gardenias to irises, rhododendrons and mint. Nearby, he caught sight of a hummingbird standing near a honeysuckle flower. Sora found himself mesmerized by its bright and vibrant colors—green of both light and darker hues coated over silver and the slightest of purple on its neck.

Sora looked around for a moment. It was perhaps selfish that he was the only one who could behold such beauty, but at the same time he did not necessarily feel compelled to leave the bird's side for fear of it flying away while he was gone.

When he looked back at the spot however, the hummingbird had disappeared. He looked to his right and caught sight of the bird flying around him. The grin on his face continued until, out of nowhere, the hummingbird diverted its course. It flew for the house, possibly in an attempt to enter it through the window, however because the window was closed, it slammed into the window and fell down on the sill, unmoving.

Sora winced before walking over to the window. A pang of guilt washed over him. Had he been more aware, or had even been in the right place, perhaps he could have saved this bird in time.

Transfixed by this dead bird, he had almost failed to noticed a glimmer of white passing by the living room door inside. Sora pressed his hand against the window and tried to look inside but it seemed that no matter how much time seemed to pass, he saw no sign of the stranger in chartreuse.

Pulling away from the window, he walked over to the door and slammed his fist against its polished wooden finish. The door gave way without resistance. This both piqued Sora's curiosity and terrified him all the more. As he stepped into the house, a familiar warmth and comfort befell him. All of a sudden, Sora could no longer believe in something as wide and unpredictable as the outside world. Here he felt it were possible to find stability, some form of protection that would have been impossible to find elsewhere.

Yeul's house was by no means extravagant in anyway. It was simple and homely. He walked into the living room and there on the table he saw it. A fishbowl in the middle filled with water but containing no fish, only poppies of a red, yellow and purple variety floating and swirling around on the water's surface. For some reason, this bowl struck him as a contradiction. Something in his mind told him that this was not where it was meant to be. He also knew exactly where to take it.

He picked up the bowl and turned around to the door only to pause as he looked upon the figure in the chartreuse saree. There was no mistaking it this time. He watched as Luna turned her back to him and walked out of the room, turning left in the hallway to where the stairs were.

After she disappeared once again, Sora made to follow her but when he arrived at the hall, he looked up to instead find a figure in a tattered black robe staring back at him from halfway on the stares. Whoever or whatever it was made no attempt to do anything more than stare. So overwhelmed was he by this figure's presence that he forgot what he was holding in his hands. The bowl shattered to pieces and water spilled out across the floor next to his feet. The poppies however, were strangely absent.

When he looked back up from his feet to the stairs, he instead found the figure hovering just above him. He made to step back only to visibly shudder as he felt a slimy tentacle snake its way around his neck.

Davy Jones' ironic smile twisted into a sardonic grin. "Do you fear death?"

"AGH!"

Sora awoke with a start, covered in sweat. He quickly looked around him in fear. On a pillow in the corner of the room he caught sight of Mushu snoozing peacefully as he slept. Surrounding him were three other bunk beds each with their own occupants. He looked over to the window to see daylight creeping in through the curtains. He rolled back onto his back and clawed at his face with his digits, drawing and pushing the beads of sweat into the pores of his skin.

He didn't want to give that dream another single thought, but he knew that would be impossible, at least while he was still lying on his bed. An early start to the day couldn't hurt anyway. With that thought in mind, Sora quietly got out of bed and stretched, ready to look forwards, not behind him.

* * *

 ** _The Quad, San Fransokyo Institute of Technology_**

"So let me get this straight. You want us to divulge our personal lives on some cheap broadsheet that I'd sooner use as my dog's toilet paper just so we can _maybe_ clear our names," Go Go reiterated in annoyance. "Excuse me if I'm not just jumping into your arms at this idea."

"But… if it helps the public sympathize with us, is it really a bad thing?" Honey Lemon asked.

"See, Honey Lemon gets it. We've had our reputation unfairly blemished because of what's happened recently. So it's okay for them to have a voice but not us?" Fred asked.

"For the most part I won't even intrude unless there's something you want to tell me. You can just pretend I'm not there and I'll go back and forth between you guys every now and then," Eleftheria promised. She was slightly disgruntled at having been practically dragged out of her bed by Enna Kros but when she had heard of a great opportunity that would take advantage of her journalistic talent, she wasn't about to complain.

"That's not the point. Don't you think it would easy for anyone who knows us to tell who we are from what we do? We're risking our identities being exposed to the masses. That's the kind of attention I'm not willing to put up with as a college student," Go Go replied.

Eleftheria folded her arms and pursed her lips in a lopsided manner for a moment. "Well, I mean just look at you. Not exactly the most indistinguishable bunch around. Frankly, I'm surprised you've even gotten this far without being found out."

"Who is Frank Lee?" Baymax asked tilting his head to the side.

"I see your point," Wasabi replied.

"You know, this is just like issue number 133 of The Tales of Captain Spider-Monkey in which our hero, faced with the prospect of being run out of his town by the people he swore to protect, is seen at his most vulnerable," Fred said.

"Oh, here we go… do your comics contain every single scenario available?" Go Go asked.

"Comics are a window into the depths of humanity. The sweet meetings, the bitter goodbyes, the pungent romance, like a dance with the soul itse-"

"Okay, we get it. So what happened to Captain Spider…Monkey anyway?" Go Go asked.

"Well, the evil Theator emerged from the shadows he had been lingering in for so long and kidnapped the mayor in order to lure Captain Spider-Monkey into a trap. However, with his amazing intellect, power and agility, he was able to overcome the affair and save the day in front of many who witnessed their spectacular battle. Though Theator escaped, Captain Spider-Monkey had succeeded in rescuing the mayor though at the cost of sustaining heavy burns from Theator's electrobeam. Nevertheless, his bravery to stand up when no one else would was hailed far and wide."

"Great, so it's useless unless by some miracle the mayor gets conveniently kidnapped then," Go Go said, bursting the bubble gum in her mouth.

"I like how the only thing you took from that was that it had to be the mayor," Wasabi pointed out."

"Come on, guys. What better a time than now for the public to know about us without… um, knowing about _us_? I say we take the ball and run all the way to the end zone. Lemme hear you say touchdown!" Honey Lemon raised her right arm as though she were celebrating. When no one else followed suit, she slowly lowered her arm. "Less of a touchdown and more of a fumble then."

"Fine, I'll dip. But don't expect a rosy view is all I'm saying," Go Go said.

"Please, my readers demand better of me than that," Eleftheria said with a smug smile. "Don't worry, Ace Journalist Eleftheria Hollenbeck is on a mission to restore your reputation! Ooh, this is gonna be great! I'm ready to start whenever you guys are," Eleftheria said.

"Oh, I'm first! I'm first!" Fred exclaimed, jumping up and down hyperactively. He pretended to slick back his hair before coolly sliding forward and taking Eleftheria's hand in his own. "Madame, allow me to do you the honors of whisking you away to another world full of excitement, wonder and intrigue the likes only your mind's eye has ever seen," Fred said.

"That's a pretty bloated way of saying comic books," Wasabi said.

"Comic boo- woah!" Eleftheria barely had enough time to finish her sentence before being dragged away by Fred.

* * *

 ** _Residential District, Radiant Garden_**

Gray skies and rain beating down heavily on the rooftops and ground meant that the violence from last night had mostly been quelled. Mostly. Martial law had been enacted, placing the town under lockdown until those that ruled over the residents were sure that order was restored. As for when that might be, that was anyone's guess.

Jayne looked out from her window, watching as a giant plume of dark smoke towered over the other buildings in the area. Last night, a fire had broken out in one of the chemical labs of Xanatos Enterprises. It had only served to add to the disorder and chaos as people sought to, desperately, wrest control of their town from invaders.

Jayne had been doing her evening performance at the theatre while it had been happening, but when she had first heard that Sora had been there, she rushed over to the town square in hopes of finding him. While she couldn't quite make it all the way due to being stopped by one of the guards, she didn't really need to go all the way either. She had made it to the Industrial District where Xanatos' building resided and managed to catch a glimpse of him before he left. At first she hadn't even been able to tell who he was, what with his hair not as spiky as she had last seen it, but there could have been no mistaking it when she saw his Keyblade.

Returning home, Jayne had been so enraptured at catching a glimpse of her friend again that she had gone straight to Stephanie's room to tell her. Speaking of the young girl, their interactions together had become… strange. Jayne wasn't quite sure how to put it into words but Stephanie's emotions had become a lot more unstable over the course of time.

Sometimes she would arrive at the nine-year-old's room to hear the sounds of sniffling and weeping. Sometimes, if Jayne tried to offer to do something for her, be it helping her pack her bag for school or give some sort of advice, Stephanie would appear angry and tell Jayne to leave her alone. Other times, she seemed incredibly appreciative for the help. It was all over the place, and Jayne seriously doubted it was puberty. Naomi, when she had time to come over to help, seemed to agree.

But there was little either of them could do. Roughly two months back, Jayne had been taken away from her rehearsals and called in to the principal's office at Stephanie's school because she had thrown one of her classmate's pencil cases out of the window. It hadn't been the only instance either. They had suggested she try out things like after school clubs or picking up an instrument—anything that could keep her busy. Jayne found that it did, but only temporarily. After that week, she had brought Stephanie to the theatre numerous times to watch rehearsals, even partake in them sometimes as well as other events that her theatre company hosted. Stephanie seemed to take to these quite well, outside of the house anyway. Inside, other than the occasional moments where they cooked together, she made it very clear sometimes how she wanted to be alone.

Jayne wished she could be strong enough to look past all of it. That it was truly the next phase in the young girl's life. But if it was, then the girl's mother had chosen the wrong time to walk out on her daughter. Jayne saw herself as permanently babysitting rather than being close to a second mother figure. She wasn't ready for the latter (if she ever would be) and it was clear over the past few months that Stephanie didn't want her to be. If all of this was happening because she was stressing out about her mother then Jayne could only hope that Sora's appearance was a sign of things to come, because she had no idea how to go about finding Colette in the first place.

Her eyes darted away from the tower of smoke and down to the streets below her the moment something caught her attention. Someone, she couldn't tell who it was from the second floor but it looked like a woman, seemed to be running away from something judging by how she kept looking behind her. Jayne didn't have to wait long for someone in armor to enter her peripheral vision. Her breath seemed to catch in her throat as she saw them raise their Keyblade quickly then threw. The Keyblade struck the woman's shoulder and she fell forward and hit the ground.

The woman turned around slowly as she grasped her shoulder and held her hand up, the armored soldier nearing closer and closer. "Please! No, I'm sorry! I'm sorry! NO!"

The woman went silent in the middle of her final cry.

Jayne, who had her hands pressed against the window, gritted her teeth and closed her eyes shut before she could witness the impact of metal against flesh, but she was unable to block out the sound of a scream dying out and so the image conjured in her head of what had happened may probably have been worse than what actually occurred.

Reluctantly, she opened her eyes again and peered down onto the street to see another armored figure joining the other. Jayne took one hand off the window and placed it on her chest, trying to regulate her breathing.

"This is… so messed up…" she whispered, leaning her forehead against the window. With restless eyes she continued to keep her eye on the two armored soldiers for a while. It seemed like all the hard work put in to restoring Radiant Garden was going down the drain. Any progress that had been made in the past three years seemed to be all for nought now. Even if Sora and the Restoration Committee could retake the city, progress would be set back a few years, possibly even a decade compared to what Xanatos had done for them.

Just as Jayne was about to take her head from the cool glass, she saw one of the armored soldiers look up towards her window. Jayne ducked down and placed her palms on her temples.

Perhaps they had just been looking at something else, like a bird that had conveniently been next to her window or something. Then a knock on the door came and quickly discarded that theory.

Jayne had heard about this from Naomi. Guards knocking on people's doors, interrogating them about their affiliation with Sora and arresting them if they so much as suspected that they did. Jayne had no idea how she had managed to avoid 'the knock' until now, but her emotional state wasn't prepared for any such visit at the moment. She had heard it was things like that which could be used by them to decide if someone was telling the truth or not. 'If you're not guilty you have nothing to fear', so goes the saying.

Whether she was ready or not didn't really matter anyway. The longer she took to open that door, the more they would suspect she were hiding something, which she was so she could only see it as a lose-lose situation.

"Okay, calm down. You've got this, Jayne. Okay, think, think… I need to warn Stephanie quickly," Jayne decided. She quickly got up and ran into the hallway, her hand on her pounding heart as she did so. She reached Stephanie's door, but didn't have time to knock and instead barged right through to see Stephanie lying in bed.

There was a groan and Stephanie turned around to meet her. The second surprise of the day greeted her. The young girl look strangely pallid and her lips cracked. She was also wearing her hair down instead of the pigtail buns she normally had.

"Steph! A-are you okay?" Jayne rushed over to Stephanie's bed side and placed the back of her hand on her forehead. Not expecting how warm it would feel, she withdrew it quickly and frowned. "You're burning up. This is definitely not okay."

"Jayne…" Stephanie groaned. There was another set of knocks on the door. Jayne couldn't delay it any longer.

"Listen, Steph. If anyone comes into this room, you don't know anything about Sora, okay?" Jayne said. She gave her hand a quick squeeze. "As soon as they're gone, we'll figure out what's wrong, I promise."

"Jayne… please, don't leave me…" Stephanie said weakly. Jayne could make out a pool of wetness forming under her eyes. Jayne smiled at her and swiped at the tear with her thumb before standing and leaving the room. There was another set of knocks, much harsher this time, before Jayne could make it down the stairs to open the door. Just before she did, she ran into the kitchen, turned on the sink and ran her hair through the cold water. Once she was satisfied, she turned the water off, scrubbed at her head quickly with the nearby kitchen towel then ran over to open the door.

"Any reason it took you so long to open up?" one of the guards asked, taking off his helmet to reveal his grizzled appearance.

"Well… better I had opened it than not opened it at all, right?" Jayne asked, feigning an innocent smile. The guard looked unamused, choosing instead to look at his partner. "I mean, well, I was in my room just coming out of the shower. I was just about to dry my hair but then you knocked and… well, I wouldn't want to keep you waiting."

"I hope we didn't cause any disturbances for you, ma'am. I saw you looking out of the window," The man looked behind him to where the woman's corpse was, also giving Jayne a clear view. He turned back to meet her, obscuring the corpse once more. "I wouldn't worry too much. Once we're done, it'll be like she was never here at all."

"Then I hope you finish quick," Jayne said, forcing out her most convincing laughter.

"Oh, he does," replied the helmeted person next to him with what Jayne imagined was a grin. The helmetless man did his best not to look fazed and instead cleared his throat.

"You are aware of the disturbance last night, yes? Of course you are. Not every day something like that happens. A boy by the name of Sora arrived in Radiant Garden yesterday. Admittedly, one of our longstanding guards had gone rogue on us and had kidnapped someone very important to him. However, it seemed that the boy had more on his mind than simply rescuing her. He sought to cause disorder and stir furore among the public. He's also responsible for arson. Someone like that can never be allowed to set foot in Radiant Garden again, that is if he isn't still here hiding like a rat. I want to know. What's your opinion?"

"My opinion?" Jayne asked.

"Of whether he's still here or not. What do you think?" the man asked. Jayne was sure she was being tested here for her reaction. Words weren't the only thing that could give her away. She couldn't risk to hesitate for too long with her answers much less appear as stiff.

"Well I don't really give much thought to it. I- It's possible he might be but if he's causing this much trouble, I hope he stays away."

"Couldn't agree more, ma'am. I'm sorry about this, but do you mind if we look around for a bit. We won't take up too much of your time. Hopefully," the guard said.

"No, of course not. Come right in." It pained Jayne to say that because in her head she was screaming the opposite. Never had she felt like she had so much power in a situation from closing a door before and yet like with all temptations of power she knew full well never to indulge in them. The guards however, stayed in place, neither moving but exchanging looks at one another once again and occasionally throwing her a strange look. "I-is something wrong?"

"You're kind of in the way," the helmeted one pointed out.

Jayne blinked and then quickly slipped to the side to allow them through. "Oh, so sorry. Um, would you like a cup of coffee or tea?"

"Thanks but I'm fine. Want anything?" Helmetless asked the other guard. When he shook his head, Jayne gave a quick nod and backed away slightly, watching intently as the guards surveyed the room.

"You have a nice place here," the guard complimented while his eyes darted around shiftily.

"I like to keep things neat," Jayne replied. "It helps with the stress of having to memorize lines in a play."

"Play? So you're an actor? I admire that. Being able to put yourself into another role entirely even if for only the briefest of time. It's like jumping out of your own body for a bit, isn't it?" the helmeted guard asked.

"Well, I love to be passionate about what I do. When I meet other people, I like to listen and learn from them. So, I suppose that's where I get a lot of my inspiration from," Jayne replied meekly. She felt like she was being boxed into a corner here.

The two Horus henchmen continued their search for another minute before moving upstairs. Jayne bit her lower lip and kept her eyes on the ground the entire time as they reached the second floor landing. Eventually she looked up and spoke.

"Oh, I should tell you. I'm babysitting at the moment. A friend of mine's daughter is having me take care of her for a while."

The helmetless guard stopped right outside Stephanie's door and turned to look at Jayne. "A babysitter too? Is there anything you don't do?"

"Complicated meals so as long as you don't ask me for that, you're fine," Jayne said with a smile.

"Oh, that's a shame. What use is a woman who isn't good in the kitchen?"

Jayne simply stared, doing her utmost best to conceal any reaction. Soon the man burst out laughing and waved his own comment off.

"I kid. I kid. I'm not some patronizing sexist cave man. Rest easy."

"Right…" was Jayne's response. She looked over to Stephanie's door quickly before looking back. "Listen, now might actually not be the best time. The girl in there… she's not feeling too well. A very high fever. I think it might be best if I get her to the hospital actually."

"Oh, I hope she's alright. Do you need us to contact her mother?" asked the helmeted one.

"NO! Uh, I mean, that's not necessary. I- I can get her there just fine and her mother works at the hospital anyway so… but I appreciate the concern. I'm just really worried for her," Jayne told them.

"Oh, well, we're sorry for intruding but we do hope you understand. Dissenters who seek the disturb the peace must be dragged out from the shadows they hide in and into the light. There are people who will do anything to get rid of us, even if it means hurting those who have nothing to do with it. We just want to keep good people like you safe."

"I understand completely. Wouldn't want you to have doubts," Jayne said.

"Right, well. We'll just say good luck to the girl and then we'll be off," the helmetless one told her. He pressed down the handle and pushed, exposing the lump of a small girl's body covered by a duvet. The helmetless one was about to speak but paused, his smile fading. He looked once again to his partner.

"You sense it too?" he asked.

The helmeted one nodded. "It's a similar presence to the other one. But how? Is it somewhere in this room? Or maybe…"

"Inside her?" the grizzled man finished. Everything they were saying, Jayne didn't understand, but she suddenly felt uneasy. She had every right to be.

The shorter helmeted soldier looked at Jayne. "I'm sorry but can you leave us for just a moment? We want to talk to the girl. It won't take long."

"Why?" Jayne asked. From the way they had been talking, she didn't want to leave them alone with Steph if she could help it. Colette would probably never forgive her if she let something happen to her daughter. Also it was a fairly strange request to be asked to be left alone if all they were doing was wishing her the best of luck.

"We just need to talk. Actually, I am starting to feel for some coffee so if you wouldn't mind…" the grizzled man suggested. It was an obvious attempt to get her out of the way but Jayne was powerless to do much about it. She simply nodded and backed out of the way, watching as they closed the door behind them.

She made her way down and into the kitchen, but rather than making coffee, she opened the drawers and retrieved a chef's knife from one of the compartments. Her heart was racing and she couldn't believe she was about to do something like this but her priority first and foremost was protecting Stephanie. She slid the knife's blade through her track pants and covered the handle with her shirt.

She jogged back up the stairs and back to Stephanie's door. Without hesitating she opened it and looked into the room to see a beam of light hitting Stephanie's chest from the tip of the grizzled man's Keyblade. Jayne darted forward, drew the knife and lodged it in the helmeted soldier's side, the only exposed part of the armor that was within easy reach of her. There was a scream and the man fell sideways, the knife still in his side.

"What the hell!" The grizzled man drew away from Stephanie's side, strode over to Jayne and grabbed her by the throat, slamming her into the wall, causing a few of Stephanie's books and figurines to fall from the shelf. "Well if you haven't you got a sneaky pair of hands on you? I get uncomfortable around sneaky hands. So here's the deal—that girl there has a piece of something we need resting inside her heart. You just be a good little girl while I extract it and I won't have to break those delicate fingers of yours, you got that? As for the girl, she might not turn out alright but look at it this way, she'll probably die if it stays inside her anyway."

Jayne could feel her windpipe being crushed as she struggled to take his hand away from her throat. She tried to force out her words but all that came instead were gasps for air.

Suddenly, she found reprieve. She gripped her now released throat and coughed before looking to see the man's leg stuck halfway inside one of the books. She found her way across the walls of the room over to Stephanie, all the while keeping an eye on the grizzled man.

"What is this?!" The man tried shaking his leg out of the book but it only seemed to sink in farther. The book glowed brighter as the soldier sank deeper into its pages. With his lower half completely sunk into the book he tried moving one hand after the other in an attempt to reach Jayne. It was too late for him to do anything however. He let out a final scream and sank in completely. The book closed and Jayne looked over the bed to see a familiar boy with spiky brown hair sleeping under a tree with a yellow bear next to him.

"Sora?" Jayne whispered. For a moment, she considered picking up the Winnie the Pooh book. Then she remembered what it had just done to that soldier and thought better of it. Her main focus now was on Stephanie anyway. She looked over to the girl to see that her breathing was erratic, her eyes wide but pupils seemingly focused on Jayne.

"This isn't good… I'm gonna get you to the hospital, okay, Steph? You're going to be alright." Jayne scooped Stephanie up into her arms and was about to leave the room when she saw the soldier she had stabbed still stirring about the floor. She walked over to him and pulled out the knife before heading out and closing the door behind her.

* * *

 ** _Barracks Training Grounds, Kingdom of Corona_**

Sora swerved out of the way of an attack from Kairi, spun sideways and slammed the Kingdom Key into the ground, sending a ripple of energy hurtling towards her. Kairi stood her ground and raised her guard with her Destiny's Embrace. With her right leg slightly bent at an angle, she was able to control the blast and eventually redirect it to her side from where she could see Luna dashing towards her.

Luna transformed Dream Seeker into its Magic Shield form, absorbing the energy of the blast. Converting the weapon into Artemis' Bow, she fired an arrow filled with absorbed energy right back at Kairi, the sound as the arrow left her bow coming off as a boom of thunder. This time, Kairi could do little but dodge out of the way, leaning her body backwards and blinking as the arrow whisked past her.

Before it could hit the wall in the back, Neuge jumped down from where she had been sitting, and cast Slowaga just as she landed. The kinetic energy of the arrow quickly dissipated and it fell pathetically to the ground.

Sora looked to the Luna and Kairi and smiled. "Well, at least we won't have to pay for damages."

Kairi thrust her arms out and began stretching on the spot. "That was good though. The only one who can really give me a good spar right from time to time is Freya. Don't get me wrong, we have fun all our own but I still missed you guys."

"We missed you too, Kairi. No offence, Sora, but you're kind of a wimp when you spar with me. I get the feeling it's because you don't want to hurt me so it's nice to fight someone who doesn't hold back," Luna said.

"Wha- Okay, first of all, we almost never spar. We really haven't had the time since we left Shantotto's shack. Secondly, I do not hold back!"

"Oh, so then you're just plain… bad?" Kairi suggested, throwing Luna a quick grin.

"I can't win with you two. Where's Riku when you need him? I need to level the playing field," Sora said.

"Riku… I wonder where he is now," Kairi said. "I haven't seen him in so long. You either."

"Well when we left him, he was kind of missing an eye. He and Xion are going through so much pain at the moment, but I know they'll be okay. They've been through so much before that I think if they ever feel like they're about to drown, they'll have just what they need to keep them afloat. So I'm not worried. Truth be told, when he and I became Keyblade Masters I had a feeling things like this would happen. Can't expect to spend every waking moment of your life with the same people. It can happen for some but it's mostly unrealistic. Just keeping each other in our thoughts is good enough," Sora said.

"So… if you never saw me again, you'd be fine with it?" Kairi asked slowly.

"Err… that's… but you're here right now. That's different," Sora replied, trying to avoid Kairi's gaze as she inspected him from all angles.

Eventually, Kairi drew away and laughed. "That was cruel of me. Sorry. Anyway, you really have grown, Sora. You know, Luna, there was a time when all that brain of his could think about was finding Riku. So if another guys comes in who he befriends, just hope you don't play second fiddle."

"Wow, you are SO not sorry!" Sora exclaimed while Luna giggled.

"Okay, okay. I'll lay off ya… for a while. But seriously, you're right. We all share the same sky after all, even more so now. If it's to be, then we'll find our way to each other again. If it's not, then I might not be happy at first but I'll come to accept it. Don't cry because it's over, be happy that it happened," Kairi said.

"Gee, Kairi, you trying to make me cry?" Luna asked.

Neuge walked over to them with her arms folded. "The truth hurts, but it's one you both need to prepare for. People come in and out of our lives. I'm not saying you can't get attached, because our feelings for each other are all any of us have to distinguish ourselves from our enemies, but don't let yourself sink in to your desires in your attempts to recover those attachments."

"Well this turned dour. Why do you have to make a lesson out of everything?" Sora asked.

"As long as I'm not the one suffering from the lecture, yes. By the way, Elsa came to me this morning and confessed everything. Apparently she was the one responsible for Xanatos' death."

"No… but why would she?" Kairi asked.

"It was an accident. Xanatos being Xanatos knew to pluck all the right strings, took it one step too far and she lost control of her emotions. Lightning, who I confirmed all the details with after, corroborated her story, at least to the best of her ability. She didn't see the instance of murder but she quickly made the decision to cover things up after the fact in order to protect Elsa. Even Elsa didn't know what Lightning was going to do when she sent her away," Neuge explained.

"So, is Elsa going to be locked up then? Please don't say that," Luna begged.

Neuge gave her a lopsided smile. "No. The only reason that we jailed Lightning was because she refused to co-operate with us. She obstructed the investigation and thought she was above the law—our code—or at least that's what we thought at the time. Now we know that she was only committing a selfless act. Lightning's safe, as is Elsa."

"Oh, thank goodness. I knew- we all knew that there was something really strange about it but we couldn't prove it," Luna said.

"Well, with that out of the way, we can concentrate on the battle ahead," Neuge said.

"Yeah. So do you have a strategy for how we're going to do this, or are we just going to go in Keyblades blazing?" Sora asked.

"If you have a death wish, sure, but leave the rest of us out of it. If you want our plan you'll be at the meeting room today at 7PM. I need to draw up a last few things with Lightning and Yen Sid so I'll see you then," Neuge said, turning to leave. Sora waited until Neuge was out of ear's distance before turning to look at Kairi and Luna.

"We're not gonna have much time. We need to get into Radiant Garden and get that heart piece back," he said. From what Artemis had told him and Luna, there was probably no mistaking that the sensation she had felt in Radiant Garden had belonged to a piece of Kingdom Hearts. The only problem was locating it and getting to it in an area completely controlled by hostiles. Because they probably didn't have enough time to divert from Neuge's plan on the day they took the town back, they had no choice but to go just before the invasion.

"You sure you two are good on your own? Having you wonder around might not be the best thing, Sora," Kairi said.

"The less of us running around the better. As long as we don't keep in one place for too long, we shouldn't have too much of a problem. Also, I have these…" Sora said, pulling out his sunglasses and popping them on his face.

Luna rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you are not wearing those. Tell him he's not wearing those!"

"I think so too, but still, I'm not completely confident you guys can pull the get in get out routine off so easily, at least as you are now. You're going to need disguises. Maybe the Fairy Godmother can help. She's taking care of Yuna right now so go and see her," Kairi suggested.

"A disguise sounds nifty and we need to pop in and see how Yuna's doing anyway. Sure, thanks for the advice, Kairi," Sora replied.

"No problem. Oh, and, I don't really know if doing this can really bring back Yeul. Every sound part of my brain is screaming that it can't but… just be careful. That thing about attachment? Don't let it get the best of you. Keep your chin up, you got that?"

"Yes ma'am," Luna said with a salute. Sora didn't reply, only gave a quick nod and summoned his Keyblade again.

"You guys ready for another round?"

"You know what? We'll make this more interesting. Freya, I know you're watching. You can come out now," Kairi yelled. A few seconds later, the lancer assassin dropped from a nearby tree and stepped forward.

"Perhaps you're getting too good at this. Can't I be left in peace?" Freya asked.

Kairi shook her head. "Mm-hm, no getting lazy now. Maybe you can help me show these two a thing or two about why we're a force to be reckoned with."

Freya sighed but nevertheless stepped forward and twirled her spear into a battle stance. "Well I suppose a change from Kairi is welcomed every now and then."

Sora and Luna exchanged knowing glances. Readying their own weapons, they charged straight for Kairi and Freya…

* * *

 ** _Edogawa St., San Fransokyo_**

After being mercilessly dragged an hour across the city from its esteemed scientific college, Eleftheria found herself subjected to torture as Fred essentially held her 'hostage' to talk about the many comic books he possessed. Walking through Fred's family's mansion had probably just about been the best part of the experience.

Once they got to his room however, Eleftheria had to grin and bear through the insufferable talk of comic lore that Fred possessed. She tried her best to engage when possible, because it was better to attempt to show interest in something than block it out. And her attempt to engage was genuine at that. It was after all, Fred's inspiration for the Big Hero Six. The problem was that she basically got the gist in ten minutes of the entire hour and a half that she had spent listening to him talk about them.

Still, she mused while taking the monorail back to central, she had at least found what made one of the heroes tick. It wasn't like having a fascination with comic books wasn't something a lot of people could relate to either. Here was a genuine point of connection, something she could use. Not just that, but she had learned Fred's father, who was currently on an expedition in the arctic, had actually been a bona fide superhero. A superhero with a terrible name, but compared to most she had heard from actual comic books, it seemed to fit in pretty well.

Her next stop was Honey Lemon's apartment, whom Eleftheria had been told by Fred was very in touch with her chemistry side, whatever that meant. Eleftheria couldn't begin to guess what that meant either until she actually arrived at the apartment.

"Oh, so glad you could make it, Theria! Come on, you need to see this. He's gonna be a big boon to the team. I just know it!" Honey Lemon wasted no time in dragging Eleftheria into her apartment and closing the door behind them. "Now I know we kind of already have a mascot on the team with Baymax but I figure, what's to stop us from having more than one? And I personally think that he and Baymax will get along great!"

"He? Wait, who are you referring to…OH MY DEAR AUNT JOSEPHINE!" Eleftheria couldn't keep the grin off her face as a Bernese Mountain Dog ran out from behind the couch to join Honey Lemon and Eleftheria. "He's soooo cuuuute!"

"That's why I got him. I haven't told the others yet but Hubble here will be assisting me on the field with his own chem-purse, just in case I'm in need of a spare. It should provide for more options in a sticky situation. Well, at least once I've trained him up."

"Hubble. I approve. Sounds science-y," Eleftheria said. "I have a cat named Marty which is kind of based on a character from an old sci-fi film me and my parents used to watch together when we were young."

"That must have been a pretty amazing film to have such an impact on you. For me, I'd say that I got into chemistry because it's probably the key component in everything we do and see. Not knowing what reaction you'll get from a particular action is really fun to me. All of the stuff that I used while fighting crime is the result of countless trial and error, but from that failure you start to learn about what works well and what doesn't work so well. That's what's so exciting about it. Knowing something can blow up in your face one moment and then work like a charm the next, all with a little tweaking and balancing of the scale," Honey Lemon said.

"That is really cool. Even the chemical imbalances in our heads sometimes dictate how we feel at any given moment, right?" Eleftheria knelt down and began moving her hand gently across Hubble's fur. "So does this make you guys the Big Hero 7 now?"

"That, or Big Hero 6 plus 28 inches," Honey Lemon said.

"If you want to become a math equation, sure, let me just get that down in the article," Eleftheria said.

Honey Lemon chuckled. "The Big Hero 6, more formally known as the Big Hero 6 plus 28 inches… I like it already. Anyway, I was just about to take Hubble out to Edogawa Park. Would you like to come with?"

"Beats looking at the front pages of comic books all day. Can I walk him?"

"Sure thing. Let me get the leash." As Honey Lemon went into her room to retrieve Hubble's leash, Eleftheria walked towards the window and looked outside. The road below her seemed to drop at a steep curve. It was something she had never really seen before, though she couldn't exactly say Alexander had many roads to speak off in the first place. She had to question what even was her life at the moment. She had thought she had figured out what she wanted to do in life—to become a journalist deserving of the reputation had mother had garnered, maybe even something greater. Now as she looked out at this strange foreign place, she started to fear that maybe she was jumping into things too hastily. Perhaps by opening the only door she had ever known, all these new doors would remain forever closed to her. She was even more confused than ever and she had the happenstance of meeting a bunch of teenage drama queens to thank for that.

* * *

 ** _The War Council, Kingdom of Corona_**

Rounding the corner, Sora was unprepared for the voices he heard as he neared the council room. He picked up his pace a little and peeped through the crack of the opened door. It was just enough of a view to see what he needed.

"Gee, Donald, maybe he has a reason for being late."

"Yeah, like he's off taking a nap. See what happens when we don't stick with him. He starts getting lazy!"

Sora shook his head and pushed the door open. "And just who are you calling lazy, huh? Certainly not me, I hope."

"Sora!" Goofy yelled. He was the first to the teen and almost toppled him over. Donald came in from behind and Sora brought Goofy down so he could hug the both of them. After a few more seconds, he looked up to see Mickey Mouse watching them with a smile on his face.

Sora broke apart from Donald and Goofy and walked over, picking the king up and giving him a hug.

"Haha, should have expected that!" Mickey laughed.

"You should have. It's good to see you again, Mickey," Sora said. He set the king down and looked around the room. People who he had travelled far and wide to help were all now closer than ever before. He felt a hand on his shoulder and he looked around to see a tall redhead.

"What, forget about me already?" Lea asked.

"Oh, it's you," Sora said.

"Ouch! That hurt. You're getting good with these. Anyway, me and these guys have got you covered so don't worry." Lea pointed with his thumb behind his shoulder where Myde and Rould waited. "Our boy Rould here was pretty easy to find. Just think like a gambling addict and the answer pops right into your head. He's a dealer at a casino called Serendipity or something like that. Pretty ostentatious place if you ask me."

"Serendipity? The greatest discoveries come from sheer chance. I remember Shantotto telling us about it," Luna said, arriving alongside with Kairi and Freya.

"Or in this case, the greatest awards. Yes, the casino is a wondrous place where you never know when your luck will run out. I'll be sure to abstain from thinking like myself in the future," Rould said, sniping a quick look of irritation at Lea. "But it's nice to meet again, Sora, and on the same side of the coin no less. I heard about Roxas from Lea. Tragic, really. I always quite enjoyed our time together during our missions "

"Huh? No, you've got it all wrong. Roxas is still alive," Sora told them.

" _Waaak_!" Donald cried out in surprise.

"Wait, what did you just say?" Lea asked. Sora told them about his fight with Nil and Roxas' manipulation at the hands of Xanatos. Even Aqua, upon hearing Nil's name, soon joined in on listening.

"I can't believe that was him I fought back at the Pirates Cove. I don't really know him too well though, otherwise maybe I could have seen it," she said.

"Nah, not even I could see it. Maybe I could have but… I was so sure that he was dead that if anything felt familiar to me it probably wouldn't have mattered," Sora said.

"Xanatos, that rat bastard! This might sound cruel but I'm glad he's dead," Lea said through gritted teeth.

"Hey, was the insult necessary?" Freya asked.

He looked at her as though noticing her for the first time and scratched the back of his head. "Oops. Sorry. I didn't mean it in… that way…"

"Yikes, talk about making a lady cry, Lea. How cruel can you be-"

"Shut up!" A unified call from both Lea and Freya silenced Myde immediately who shoved his hands into his pockets and looked around as if unfazed. Eventually he walked around Sora and rested his arm on his shoulder.

"Psst, so there are, like, a lot of cute girls around here. Know which of them are single?" he asked in a not-so-quiet voice.

"Hey, you guys in the back can catch up later…" Neuge suddenly raised her voice, silencing the room. Myde's grip loosened and Sora took this opportunity to slip away from him and move closer to Luna and Kairi. Neuge gave a quick nod to Lightning before sitting down. Placed in between Neuge and Yen Sid, Commander Farron stood up and with all eyes on her she began the strategy for taking back Radiant Garden.

* * *

 **A/N: So I will neither confirm or deny this, but when writing this and previous chapters I may have had it in my head that Lightning had a crush on Elsa, which is partly why she was defending her. As for how Elsa feels in this situation, I'll leave that up to you to figure out. I'll add my two cents in though: Having no interest in guys does not mean she must have an interest in girls. Not saying she might not reciprocate those feelings for Light but there's also nothing wrong with her being single and content with that. Yes, these are things that go through my head while writing this stuff.**

 **Anyway, next time will see Sora and Luna travelling to Radiant Garden to meet up with Jayne and save Stephanie. See you next time!**


	66. Town of Fear

**_A/N: So I may have wanted to add more of the new world in this chapter but since this one was already taking too long and it actually turned out pretty long anyway, there's just a little tease awaiting you. And you thought it was bad with Valkyria Chronicles 4. Just be glad there's just over ten days before Red Dead Redemption 2 comes out. Anyway, before that little pause inevitably happens, enjoy the new chapter!_**

* * *

Chapter 65

Town of Fear

"Due to recent events where we had no choice but to make ourselves known to Horus, we've decide to launch our biggest operation since our inception. It's risky, and it will make or break us, but if we can pull it off we'll have successfully seen off a major threat that could have posed a serious risk to our new world order." Here, Lightning paused and gave the room a look over, taking in faces of many a mixture—hopeful, fearful, even attentive to the point of seeming stony-faced.

"Because we can't one hundred percent locate a flying castle, we need to start our offensive in the town they operate—Radiant Garden. We will send in a task force of about sixteen people, eleven of which will serve as a distraction while the five use the space created to meet up with the Restoration Committee. Because we're bringing them above ground we've decided to call this operation 'Sirius'."

"Named after the brightest star. Fascinating. I guess since the stars won't come out to play we have to be the light that guides others," Sora heard Rould murmur next to him.

"Neuge, Celes, Sarah, Vera and Adam shall be the group sent in to meet with the resistance. The rest shall be myself, Hercules, Lea and his group, and Jasmine, Aurora, Snow White and Belle acting in support. The four of you." Lightning seemed to be just addressing the four princesses. "Probably have the most important jobs here. What we're doing is reckless, perhaps extremely so, but we can't afford to hesitate on risks if we want to take back Radiant Garden. You need to be alert and on top of things. Put it this way, if you have mistakes to make, make them now instead of later."

Sora couldn't help but feel sorry for them, being thrust into something like this with immediate expectations placed upon them. Wanting to avoid mistakes could sometimes lead to making them, especially under paramount pressure. But Lightning wasn't wrong either. If they wanted this to succeed everyone had to pull their weight.

"At this point, the high command of Horus should have caught on to our plan. They'll have no choice but to bring the castle back as protection," Lightning said.

"And that's when the rest of us strike," Mickey said.

"I don't expect them not to realize our plan, because as I've been told by Vera, Irva Torvald seems to be a master tactician when it comes to battlefield tactics, so trying to outsmart him isn't worth our time. That is why we need to rely on speed and efficiency. If we can overwhelm them then our air force, the rest of you coming in by Gummi Ship, can fly in for a surprise attack. At that point, your objective is the subjugation of the enemy commander by whatever means. We can't rely on hoping that fighting on two fronts will stretch them out so this is the most effective way of dealing with the situation."

"Sounds like a proper Gish gallop to me," Rould said in a low voice.

"Gisahl-what now?" Sora asked.

"Gish gallop. A technique used in debating. It requires the person to fire rapid argument after argument without any basis as to the strength or accuracy of the argument in hopes of shutting down the opponent. Naturally the opponent has to spend more and more time trying to refute your arguments, thus weakening their own. It appears Commander Farron's tactic isn't necessarily to provide a focused attack, but rather a rapid fire one that doesn't take any particular target into account. If she can confuse their response, there's at least a fighting chance."

"So a coordinated uncoordinated attack then. Think it will work?" Sora asked.

"It's anyone's guess. All strategies are a gamble. In the end, sometimes the only thing you can truly do when faced with insurmountable odds is believe. If anyone's good at doing that it's you," Rould replied.

"I want to make this clear," Neuge said, standing up next to Lightning. "I know that we're outnumbered, and at the end of the day we can never be sure what we'll face out there. We may very well be biting off more than we can chew, but at the end of the day each and every one of us want the same thing—to see each other alive at the end of the day. To protect our homes. If you believe in the cause we've been fighting for, then when they fling mud at us, we stand tall and proud. Never forget what you've accomplished, by yourselves and with each other. Tactics can only do so much. It is your fire that keeps this dream of ours running."

"And… and- and- and- AND… we've got a god on our side so if push comes to shove we can always throw him at them," Aladdin said, placing an arm on Herc's shoulders.

" _Half-_ god. Probably not the best idea to put all your hopes on me," Hercules corrected.

"But couldn't you just, I don't know, get your old man to help out or something? Just a little zap of lightning to blow that castle out of the sky?" Myde asked.

"Maybe you should ask. I'm sure he'd be happy to help you after that business with the Olympus stone," Hercules said. Myde visibly stiffened upon the mention and scratched at his head, his lips parted as though he were trying to say something. Herc turned away and continued, "In any case, he probably won't. The gods don't tend to get involved with the affairs of the mortal realm, unless it has something to do with them."

"Not directly anyway," Luna said in a low voice so only Sora could hear her.

"Now, Radiant Garden has been turned into an impregnable fortress with mounted cannons along its walls and will no doubt have increased activity within them after everything that's happened recently. We've also heard from our contacts within Radiant Garden, Aeleus, Dilan and Ienzo, that they've erected an anti-portal barrier around the town. That means no corridors of light or darkness to help us in. An entrance by air also looks to be impossible, with anti-air cannons controlled by a defence system from somewhere within the town," Neuge said.

"Oh for fu- urgh, okay, enough with the doom and gloom. Just get to the part where you tell us how to get in already!" Lea snapped.

"Well for one thing, it doesn't affect fairy magic. Enna confirmed as much," Neuge replied.

"Wait… Enna Kros is a fairy?" Sora asked.

"She never told you, dear? And she's not just a regular old fairy either, but the High Fairy, the head of all fairies," the Fairy Godmother told him.

"So does this High Fairy have more powers than you, Fairy Godmother?" Cinderella asked.

"Why do you ask, child? Thinking of asking for a replacement?" Cinderella blushed and the Fairy Godmother let out a hearty laugh. "Don't worry, I'm just joking around. As for whether she's more powerful or not than the average fairy, I couldn't say. But could you imagine that I got the chance to help the high fairy practice her magic when she was just a lil' tyke in her diapers?"

"Um, now isn't exactly the best time for baby stories," Lightning said. "The Fairy Godmother, Flora, Fauna, Merriweather, the Blue Fairy and Enna will assist in get us there. Once we do, the larger party of us 16 will be in charge of sabotaging their air defence systems. Once that's done, that will clear the way to begin bombing the Gummi Hangar by air. If their ships get in the air we'll just have that much more to deal with when the rest of you take on that flying behemoth of a castle. So… any questions?"

"Yeah, when do we start?" Sora asked. There was no doubt in his mind as to Lightning's plan. He expected it to be dangerous but Neuge and Yen Sid trusted her for a reason. If they had faith in her, then so did he. The only problem now was getting into Radiant Garden before the invasion started.

"6AM Saturday morning. Is that a problem?" Lightning replied. So only a day's preparation then. If he and Luna couldn't find that heart piece by tomorrow there was no telling when or if they ever would be able to.

Sora's eyes left Luna's and he looked back at Lightning. "Not at all."

* * *

 ** _Irva Torvald's Office, Aboard the Moving Castle_**

From his desk, Irva watched as a beautiful orange glow swept over the horizon—the final hour of sunset. Below him were clouds, gaseous substances that many a man had dreamed of often surpassing. What birds had, man could only have dreamed of. Even now, he still had no real wings of which to fly with, but he did have a vessel that could take him 28,000 feet high. Even so, he couldn't help wandering, when his target, Kingdom Hearts, appeared from its long slumber, would everything he had now be enough?

He returned to the book in front of him, a book written by someone he had once known. The pages didn't even show their age, protected from wear and tear by the use of magic. That person, as far as he knew, had died before the Keyblade War could end but still, it was strange that he would find something of his in the castle's library.

There was a knock on the door. When Irva told them to come, Mari Seren entered and closed the door. She stepped forward and stared at the orange horizon for a moment before looking to Irva.

"Lord Irva, we've successfully captured Dollis and its neighbouring towns. I wanted to keep my men there, but when I heard about the trouble in Radiant Garden I rushed back as fast as I could."

"And just as well that you did. Expanding our territory is all and well but we cannot afford to lose Radiant Garden. What faces us now are the vocal minority who dream of nothing but the 'good old days'. Unfortunately, if it were just that, it wouldn't be such a problem. Voices without organization can be quelled with time and understanding. Though I am their leader, I understand that mine is probably not the face they want to see at the moment, so as we speak, Leonhart is preparing a speech to ease the masses' concerns. What concerns me more is that I fear our enemies will take advantage of the raucousness of the situation. If they so desired they could strike any day now," Irva explained.

Mari raised her brows and smiled. "Well they'll have trouble getting in. Our defences are impregnable."

"Almost. I've done this long enough to know there's always a weak point somewhere, as long as the hands that make it are human."

"I'll be sure to plan for every contingency then, or at least the ones I can think of. It's true we're only human, but so are they. But even so, who could hope to take a fortress like Radiant Garden? The Lunarians are effectively scatterbrained after what happened to their base, I hear Cephadalus and Oberian are have united under one banner again but they're having problems of their own. So that leaves… what, that Sora kid?"

"Who has more influence in Radiant Garden than all those other factions put together. Never underestimate the ability of a single person to influence many," Irva said.

"I know that feeling," Mari mumbled. She moved closer to Irva and peered down to look at the book. "I could use something new at the moment. This current one I'm reading has me bored to tears. Yeah, I get it, you have a fetish for whales. No need to rub it in my face."

"Or slap you on your face with its tail for that matter. Maybe the writer was a whale in their past life?" Irva humored.

"Then I hope I was a whale hunter in mine. I think I'll put it on the back burner for a bit," Mari said. Irva took that to usually mean that she would never return to it. If something didn't hook Mari in by the time she got to page 100 then there was almost no hope for it.

"Well, perhaps I'll give you mine after I'm done with it. It's a book chronicling a man's study on the Farseers. You would never guess who it was penned by. None other than Oberian's leader himself," Irva said.

"That self-proclaimed erudite? I only met him once at that council meeting just before the war began. It was around the middle of the war too that he just disappeared without leaving any trace. And then there were three," Mari recollected.

"And yet his contributions and research in capturing the light significantly steered history's course, so much so that I have no problem in admitting my father shamelessly copied that research to grow Horus. During that meeting I remember I had a seat next to my father and you, who my father had entrusted as my guard and teacher even though you were only a year older, standing behind me."

"He found me on the streets, a self-inflicted vagabond who sought nothing but justice and blood. A misguided man your father may have been, but he gave me a sense of purpose. Something to live for. As long as I could protect you, I needed nothing else. I still need nothing else," Mari told him.

"You could have done almost anything you wanted after my father passed, I imagine. I would be leader, and you would have been free to leave and go wherever you saw fit. Forgive me if I sound ungrateful, but have you really never once considered doing something else?"

Mari lowered her head so that her captain's hat obscured her eyes. "It's because I've… fallen for you. Even when I was teaching you, I often felt as though you were the one teaching me instead. You were wise beyond your years, and your calmness and determination soothed the violent storm raging inside me. It was you who truly saved me, not your father. That's why I feel the need… no, _want_ to stay by your side. I want to repay a favor you didn't even know you helped me with by helping you with yours. Even now, I would gladly give my life to see your vision realized. I'm sorry, look at me pouring my heart out to someone who may not even share those feelings. I'm sorry, I'll be taking my leave, Lord Irva."

Mari turned to quickly leave but Irva grabbed her wrist, stopping her in place. He stood up and held up her chin with his left hand.

"Stay alive and maybe you'll find out. If you die here and now, even for my sake, then all that we're working for—an existence separate from a fate that dooms us—will matter just that much less. What's the point of victory if you have no one to share it with? The same applies for your squad, I imagine. I doubt they would be very happy if they lost their leader."

"The Caladbolg Division isn't afraid to give their lives to the cause. We all acknowledged that when the war began, but back then some of us had families to fight for. But those families are gone and the only ones we have left are each other. We're family now. Of course, I don't intend on dying any time soon. I still have them, you and Horus' legacy to protect after all. It was just a hypothetical. As long as we have a reason to fight, we will survive."

Irva pulled her into a hug, causing Mari to stiffen slightly before gradually relaxing into it. "I promise, I will beat this unfair game, and we will be free."

* * *

 ** _Go Go's Apartment, San Fransokyo_**

Not for the first time of the hour, Eleftheria's eye twitched as she watched Go Go throw several punches and kicks from both ground and mid-air on the punching bag. She was sure that Go Go had noticed her discomfort by now and she could have sworn she had seen a slight smirk on the girl's face before she had launched into her series of aggressive attacks. Throw in the accompaniment of loud punk rock blasting from her speakers and Eleftheria could certainly hazard a guess that Go Go didn't want her here.

"Um, could you maybe turn the music down a bit. It's like it's knocking on my skull," Eleftheria yelled.

"What was that? Turn it up?" Go Go yelled back, a seemingly mystified look on her face.

"No! Down! Down!"

"But I thought you wanted me to go about my business like always. Changing variables isn't good for accurate results, you know. That's just science."

"Then science wants to make me deaf!" Eleftheria replied.

Go Go was about to throw another punch but paused mid-way. Dropping her arm, she walked over to the table, picked up the remote and turned off the radio.

"Whatever. I was just about done anyway," Go Go said, tossing the remote onto the couch. "Want a smoothie? I usually have one after working out," Go Go said.

"Really? You sure I'm not 'changing variables' by having you give me one?" Eleftheria asked.

Go Go let out a stifled laugh. "I'd hope not. I do work at a smoothie bar on weekends and if I say so myself I make a heck of a smoothie."

"I look forward to it. What do you usually have?" Eleftheria asked.

"Oh, just the usual stuff like mangoes, strawberries, bananas, kale and beetroot. If it's in the morning I'd also add oats since it keeps you full for longer. Oh, and ginger too. Helps with metabolism," Go Go explained.

"So in other words you're a fitness freak," Eleftheria said.

"If staying fit is a crime then sentence me to life. I hear prison has good gym facilities anyway," Go Go said.

"Don't forget to get a tattoo before you go. Then no one will mess with you."

Go Go raised a brow and walked towards the kitchen. "You know, for a journalist you sure love stereotyping."

Eleftheria walked over by the door and leaned against the frame. "You expected an open mind? I guess that's your lesson to learn then. If you're thinking of a career change from scientist or juice maker or whatever, don't pick journalism."

"That rough, huh? Fair enough. With my other job I don't think I could even stand to report about myself in a bad light anyway," Go Go said. "So… how did you find the other two oddballs of the group?"

"You're superheroes. You're kind of oddballs by default, not that that's bad by any stretch of the imagination. I'm kind of an oddball journalist myself, at least where I come from," Eleftheria said, her eyes fell to the floor and her smile disappeared. "Everyone has to find their own path in life. If it's not working out for you then why not take a risk? But that's easy for me to say. I kind of just got handed this by chance."

Go Go moved about the kitchen as she assembled all the necessary ingredients for the juicer. Though her eyes were focused on the task at hand, her ears hadn't failed to pick up on Eleftheria's exhaustion.

"Maybe, but any one of us can say that about anything. Think I would be a member of the Big Hero 6 right now if I hadn't met any of those oddballs, or had even gone to a different school? It doesn't matter how you got it. What matters is what you do with it once you do. Just like track relay. That's what determines your true value."

"You're right. My mother's ideals may have been passed down to me but it was no one but myself that chose to follow in her footsteps. It's not like she forced those ideals down my throat. So it's time I stop thinking about the what-ifs and see how far I can take this and make it my own. Lesson 101 of adulthood—life isn't without sacrifices. Even if you want to do everything, you can't do everything."

"Am I actually being given lessons on how to adult? What, and learn how to save for an actual house and retirement? I have a better idea." Go Go finished running the knife finely against the banana and placed the slices in the juicer before looking at Eleftheria. "Mind helping out?"

"Oh, yeah, sorry," Eleftheria said, walking to the counter. She pulled open the drawer and retrieved her one of the knives, setting it down on the chopping board.

"Oh, by the way, sorry for the loud music. It was… kind of a dick thing to do," Go Go said, watching as Eleftheria began chopping away at the kale.

"We're good. I _may_ have been a teenager once too," Eleftheria said, eliciting a chuckle from the both of them.

* * *

 ** _The Borough, Radiant Garden_**

Sora and Luna had returned once more, to a play they ought not to be—the theatre for the Wayfinders' showdown with Horus and one that would hopefully bring an end to the Keyblade War. As for what they planned to do with the other factions, Sora wasn't sure yet, but breaking Horus' hold and neutralizing their commander was bound to do a whole lot of good for the world.

"It's almost like we're doing something naughty. Like doing your homework in the class before the one it's due in," Luna said. Sora always found himself taken aback when he looked at Luna, at least for a few seconds until he remembered what the three good fairies had done to her appearance. Her hair was a fiery red and her cheeks were covered in freckles.

The biggest change however had been made on Sora. His hair had been gelled backwards, tied into a ponytail and darkened. He was also wearing eyeglasses, something that would probably be gone before he had the time to even really get used to them. Merryweather laying off the authenticity a little by allowing him to keep his eyesight would have been nice too.

"Huh… damn that's clever, why didn't I think of that?" Sora whispered under his breath.

"Because~ you're not… clever?" Luna suggested with an innocent look on her face.

"You really wanted to draw that out, didn't you? And besides, if I wanted to come to Radiant Garden to get tortured, I wouldn't have bothered with the disguise, thanks," Sora said. "It's just a shame they couldn't have made you a bit taller, huh?"

"And have my bones grow only to shrink after the magic wears off? Sounds painful to me," Luna said.

"And just imagine what happens if they get it wrong? You could be called Giraffe-neck Luna for the rest of your life," Sora said.

"Aaaand that's enough of this conversation. Artemis, are we headed in the right direction?" Luna asked.

"It's changed course slightly since we were last here but we're still on track," Artemis replied.

"Changed course? As in it moved? The other hearts haven't done that at this point so… it's on someone's person?"

"A Horus member, maybe?" Sora proposed.

Luna shook her head. "No… no, I don't think so. They would definitely have taken it back to the castle by now if they had discovered it, unless they have it on them and they don't know it. Either way, we need to find it and quick."

But despite this, Sora and Luna never increased the speed at which they walked for fear of not knowing what would be around the next corner. To walk fast now would probably end badly, especially in an air filled with suspicion. The three fairies had given them this chance and if they were caught now, Neuge, Lightning and Yen Sid would probably never forgive them- no, him. Even with Luna's insistence, it had still ultimately been up to him to bring her along. He had just simply gone with it because she knew the dangers and she was just as involved with Kingdom Hearts and Yeul as he was, but finding heart pieces was one thing—finding them in the heart of enemy territory was quite the other.

Through Artemis' keen hunter skills, they didn't have to wait to be guided towards their destination, decreasing their chances of looking of suspicious. As they passed by other people, it amazed Sora, and not in a good way, how few people would directly meet eye contact with him or even each other, like they were scared of something. Was this really what Horus had in mind when they had envisioned taking over this town?

"Sora…" Luna tugged at Sora's sleeve suddenly.

"Hm? What's up, Lu-" Sora looked at her but when he saw that she wasn't even looking his way, he followed her gaze. Suddenly he felt his heart sink like a heavy weight was dragging him under water. His mouth as dry as a desert, he couldn't even formulate the words he felt were necessary. He could feel his eyes stinging as tears sought to burst forth from the dam he was trying so desperately to contain them with.

Bound by rope to a telephone pole, suspended in the likeness of a scarecrow was a man he knew all too well. The man had often humored Sora about his slightly hunched back giving him problems. Whoever had hung him there had ensured that wouldn't be a problem anymore. Cato, the old shop owner who had told Sora that he would rather tell his grandkids stories about Sora than about his own stamp collecting activities, was dead.

"Cato… no… why?" Luna had her hands on her eyes to conceal her tears. Though she hadn't known him as well as Sora, in the few times she had gone shopping, mainly to stock up on food and snacks for the Gummi Ship, she had become familiar with him through their ties with Sora and Kairi. Had Sora seen it first, he would have done everything to protect Luna from such a sight. Instead, he had to be glad that Kairi wasn't here as well, otherwise it would really have broken her heart.

Sora could see the 'why' pretty clearly. In his hands, Cato held, or perhaps it was more honest to say was forced to hold if the nails screws into the backs of his hands were any indication, a wooden sign that read one simple word in bold: Traitor.

Luna seemed to be struggling to breathe as she tried to get her words out. "Did… did we- are we-"

"Don't say anything more!" Sora cut her off with a glare. "We need to find the heart. That's all that matters right now. They'll pay later."

"Luna, Sora's right. We're already drawing attention to ourselves just from standing here," Artemis said.

"I… I don't know if I can do this right now. I'm sorry. I feel sick," Luna choked out.

"Luna, you can and you will. You have to. For him, and everyone else here," Sora said. He stepped in closer and placed her hands on her shoulders. "We can't let them win, right?"

Luna gave a shaky nod but refused to meet his gaze. "Y-yeah. Yeah, you're right…"

But it didn't seem like Luna even had the energy to move. Sora had to guide her away by the shoulders and it was only after being away quite some distance that she found the strength to operate again. Sora could hardly believe he had the strength to look away himself. His fists were curled into balls and his eyes were burning, but he had to push his anger, perhaps even hatred for Horus, deep down. He would stick by his words—the sun would set on Horus' time here, but the hurt, the tragedy, it would stay in their place.

It didn't take long before another interruption happened. Luna suddenly stopped and looked to her left before looking back at Sora.

"Sora, can we check in on Stephanie for a moment? Please! I haven't seen her in forever. I just need to know that she's doing alright."

Sora was about to scratch the back of his head until he remembered that his hair was smoothed down. He had promised the three fairies that they would be in and out of Radiant Garden after finding what he needed but after what they had just seen, he could hardly refuse Luna's wish. He had also been wanting to see Stephanie and Jayne again anyway. He just hoped their appearances didn't wear off because of a broken promise.

He gave her a solemn nod and led the way to Jayne's house. It wasn't like it was halfway across the town anyway. Most of the houses around Resident Garden with a few exceptions were packed up in the residential district.

"Excuse me."

Sora stopped and turned around, coming face to face with a man in an armored suit without a helmet. The moment Sora saw him, he wish he hadn't. Right now, he had an intense loathing for anything Horus and he didn't know how short his fuse was before he gave into his impulses and attacked the man then and there.

"Yes, sir?" Sora forced out a polite response. Even then, there were hints of impatience that came along with it. Suddenly feeling two hands enclose around his left, he tried his best to remain calm.

"I don't think I've asked you two. You haven't seen anything suspicious lately, have you? Like friends or even family who have said anything that might serve as a threat to the current order?" the guard asked.

"Not that I can recall, no," Sora said.

"And you, Miss…?" the guard said. Behind him, Sora could see another guard making their way over to them, this one a woman who looked to be in her late teens.

"Dorothy!" Luna said a little too quickly. Sora glanced at her from the corner of his eye and Luna cleared her throat. "It's Dorothy. And no. Is everything going to be alright?"

"Don't worry, ma'am. It's our job to keep you safe from terrorists, so long as you have nothing to hide," the guard said.

"Well, I appreciate you keeping us safe. Are we good to be on our way?" Sora asked.

"Just a moment. Do you have any identification on you?" the guard asked back.

A look of dread formed on Sora's pale face. "Identification? Ow! I mean, yeah, of course we do. Sorry."

He mentally thanked Luna for stepping on his foot to remind him of just how well prepared the three fairies had been. He reached into his pockets and pulled out the forged Radiant Garden Citizen Card that had been given to him. Luna did the same. The guard turned his back to confirm the cards with his cohort, leaving Sora and Luna in a complete shroud of mystery for what felt like the longest time.

 _Please just let us through, please don't let this end before it's even begun,_ Sora repeated in his head. Not if the world valued his sanity remain intact. He couldn't help but assume the worst after what he had just witnessed. That everything was about to go completely downhill. That they would find even the tiniest flaw and it would be just enough to give them away.

"It checks out. Sorry about that but you can never be too careful, you know?" the guard said, handing back their cards.

"We understand," Sora said.

"Okay, stay safe you too. Enjoy your day," the guard said, and he and the female guard wandered off in the opposite direction.

When they were completely out of view, Luna let her head careen to the side in defeat and closed her eyes.

"I don't know if I can handle another one, Sora," she croaked.

"Yeah, and to think we arrived with so much enthusiasm. Maybe seeing Steph again will help bring some of that back," Sora hoped, more welcoming than ever before to Luna's suggestion.

When they did finally reach Jayne's house, Sora knocked quickly on the door. They waited for a while, but there was no response. After another knock and more silence, Sora could feel Luna's eyes on him but he chose to avoid them.

"Are you looking for Jayne?"

When they turned around, they saw a girl walking up towards them. Her mouth was parted and she was breathing heavily like she had just been done running a mile or two.

"Yeah, but it looks like she's not in?" Sora replied.

"She's not. She's at the hospital," the young woman said.

"Did something happen?"

"Not to her, no. It was a girl who she's been looking after. She came down with something mighty serious all of a sudden and Jayne had to rush her to the hospital. She asked me if I could get some things from her room. We only talked on the phone but she did seem rather shaky about the whole thing."

"Stephanie…" Luna whispered. It seemed that the bad news just kept on coming.

"Oh, you know her as well? Sorry, where are my manners? I'm Naomi, Jayne's friend, and you are?"

"I'm Sora, Jayne's other friend," the boy replied truthfully.

Naomi made an amused face. "Wait, was I supposed to laugh?"

"Maybe? I can't tell you how you should and shouldn't feel when someone says something," Sora said. He looked over to Luna. "Let's get to the hospital."

The two walked off in hurried steps, leaving Naomi to stare at their backs while trying to parse the complex alien language she had discerned from a simple name.

* * *

 ** _Intensive Care Unit, Radiant Garden General Hospital_**

Sora and Luna burst into through the third door on their left after passive aggressively demanding the receptionist tell them where Stephanie was being held. It turned out her case was more serious than a simple fever. When Sora and Luna almost stumbled into the room, they found out just how serious it was.

In that room they were confronted with two, no, three familiar faces. The first in the room, or the last person Sora had seen, was obviously Stephanie. She was lying in the bed, her breaths shallow and rhythmic as though she were finding it difficult to breathe. Her face was as pale as white sheet and her forehead glistened with dews of sweat. Sitting next to her and staring at them in surprise was Jayne and standing on the opposite side of bed, surprisingly, was Ienzo, dressed in white lab coat.

"Who are you? You can't just barge in here unauthorized!" Ienzo told them.

"Huh? Oh, right, completely forgot. It's us, Sora and Luna," Sora told him. Finding out about Stephanie had sent his mind into a state of awry and he had completely forgotten that he was disguised as someone else until Ienzo had asked what he felt had initially been a weird question. When Ienzo and Jayne gave each other mirrored looks, Sora rolled his eyes and reached out for the air in front of him, summoning the Kingdom Key. "There, that good enough for you?"

"Sora? It's really you!" Jayne shot up from her seat and ran over to hug him. "Oh, you don't know how happy this makes me. Everything's already been so stressful over the last few months and it all just culminated like a volcanic explosion yesterday. I even caught a glimpse of you by the Xanatos building just as you left."

"Yeah… didn't mean for that to happen. Kind of just got flung into the middle of things," Sora said. "So what's happening with Stephanie?"

"I think I can answer that," Ienzo interjected, though from Artemis' whisper to the effect of 'It's her', they could already guess what he was about to say. "A certain event must have happened at some point to cause the balance between light and darkness in her heart to fluctuate wildly. I happened to pass Jayne and Stephanie on my way to the book shop, and naturally I was disturbed by what I felt. This certainly isn't normal, but even now I can't possibly think of what it is that's causing it."

"We know what it is. A piece of Kingdom Hearts is inside her," Luna said.

"Kingdom Hearts? Well, if it helps, I remember the guards who came to my house saying that there was something inside of her and that they needed to extract it. They also said that it was likely she would die anyway if they didn't," Jayne said.

"A piece of Kingdom Hearts? Like what's inside the castle right now…" Ienzo said.

"You know?" Sora asked.

"I keep in contact with the Wayfinder using PHS. You have it too, don't you?" Ienzo asked.

"I mean, yeah, but we… mainly use it to take photographs," Sora replied sheepishly.

"Anyway, judging by what Jayne's told me. This problem has manifested itself in the form of spikes of hormonal imbalance in Stephanie's character. But that's not all. As you know, the heart, with rare exceptions, requires both light and darkness to function properly. They don't necessarily have to balance each other out on a 1:1 ratio and dare I say that would be almost impossible, but they do need both to function. Now if there's too much of one, the heart considers it a threat and releases a countermeasure to ensure the heart doesn't collapse. In Stephanie's case, the external threat living inside her heart is resonating with her own light, amplifying it, and her heart, seeing this as a threat, is making more darkness to counter it."

"So the heart's basically this one big factory that constantly pumps out supplies of light and darkness. I wonder then, can it ever pump out too much of both?" Luna asked.

"That's a good question. And if so, then where does that excess light and darkness go? It's possible it surrounds us even as we speak. But, going back to Stephanie, as long as that piece of Kingdom Hearts is inside of her, her life is in serious danger. Hearts are more fragile than we often take them for, especially when they have to face things alone. A child's heart, with their lack of experience, even more so. For what it's worth, Stephanie's heart is faring surprisingly better than most children her age would be able to handle. But better isn't enough, and she's definitely reaching her limit."

Sora looked over at Stephanie and grimaced. When she suffered, she did so only with raspy breathing. She could not call for help herself, but Sora could hear her cry all the same, and he could feel what she was feeling. How many times now had he touched a heart that had suffered in silence? This time was no different, and he knew exactly what to do.

"So all we need to do is just go in and get that heart out of there right? Easy!" Sora said with a cheerful confidence he had somehow dug up from deep down.

"Trust you to make simple a complex matter. Even if you could get that heart out, what then about the excess amount of darkness made to counteract it? That won't just go away. In fact, taking away that light might cause a sudden collapse of her heart," Ienzo said.

"And just letting it stay there is going to help? Look, I believe in Stephanie. She can make it through this. I'll be there to guide her if she loses her way, just like with Luna," Sora said.

"No point convincing him. Once Sora's mind is set on something, he'll follow it through to the end," Luna remarked. "I'm in. Let's go and save Stephanie."

Sora smiled at her but shook his head. "Not you."

"Huh?"

"Luna, you don't have the power to dive into another person's heart like I do and, to be honest, I'm probably not the best person to teach you it. I don't know what I'll face in Stephanie's heart but… there is something you can do. Be there for her on the outside. Comfort her. I think if we can reach her from both sides, we can make a miracle happen. Jayne, you help too, okay?"

"I'll try but I don't even know what's happening at the moment. You completely lost me somewhere along the road," Jayne said.

Sora laughed and summoned his Keyblade again. "Luna'll fill you in. Okay… see you on the flip side."

"Sora, wait!" Ienzo called out. Before Sora could turn his head, a keyhole had appeared above Stephanie's head and he vanished into tiny sparks of light the flowed into the newly created space.

The first thing Sora had observed as he opened his eyes was just how colorful everything was, like it was out of a coloring book. He knew he was inside a child's heart but he hadn't expected something so joyously delightful considering the grimness of Stephanie's condition. It was a warm fuzzy feeling though, like he had known it before. Perhaps this reflection of Stephanie's childhood was resonating with a memory of his own.

Looking around, Sora could see no sign of notable changes caused by darkness. On the other hand, he was surrounded by so much light that tracking a piece of Kingdom Hearts probably wasn't going to be an easy task.

"Let's see, if I were a heart of pure light, where would I be?" Sora asked himself. He frowned and shook his head. "Hiding from someone who wants to find it, obviously. Well, a whole lot of good that did."

In the end, Sora decided that standing in place probably wasn't going to help, so he started walking. There was always the chance that he might just encounter upon something eventually. That's how it always seemed to work. And it wasn't like he had much to fear in getting lost either. It was doubtful one could even get lost when they had no particular destination in mind to begin with.

As he kept moving, he looked down and confirmed the pattern of what seemed like check patterned tiles lining the floor, reminding him of a chessboard. Soon enough however, he came across a ladder leading up to a platform or another level which didn't seem logically connected with the level he was on. He doubted the ladder was holding up a whole other floor by itself, but when he walked over the edge all he saw was a deep canyon leading to an abyss he probably didn't want to test out any time soon.

"I guess then there's nowhere to go but up," Sora said. He was about to climb up the ladder but a scream from behind him caught his attention. Turning around, he saw someone running towards him. Her skin was as yellow as a lemon and her hair a short amber blue. A strange glowing orb being carried in both her hands stuck out against her lime green summer dress. Behind her, a shadowy silhouette twisted and writhed as it advanced towards her. It was a snake, imposing and towering over them more than Sora and the woman's heights combined.

Sora ran past the woman and dodged to the side as the shadowy snake lunged forward. He twisted his body into a side flipped and cut through the snake with his Keyblade, landing on one foot and pivoting so he could back away quickly. The Keyblade had cut deep however, and after fizzling sound the snake's form melted away, leaving only darkness that vanished into the air.

"Wow! I need one of those," the woman said, staring at the Keyblade for a moment before looking up at Sora. A beam spread across her face instantly. "It's you! It's really you! Unless my eyes are totally deceiving me right now which I don't think they are. I'm a big fan."

"Err, thanks? And you are?" Sora asked, looking around nervously as the woman moved in at an uncomfortable range to analyze him.

"I'm Joy! It's such a pleasure to meet you!" Joy shifted the orb she was holding into one hand and with her left took Sora's right in her own and began shaking it enthusiastically. "You don't know just how highly Stephanie thinks of you… and Luna as well! She isn't here?"

"She isn't… wait, I'm confused. Who are you- well I know who you are _who_ are you? Like, why do you know me and where even are we?" Sora asked.

"Ooh, well there's a lot to talk about, but you're here to help Stephanie, aren't you?" Joy asked, a hopeful look in her eyes. "But then I can't understand how you couldn't know where you were. You did come of your own volition, right?"

"Well, I'm in her heart, I think, but that doesn't explain who you are…" Sora said slowly.

"We have a lot of stuff to talk about. Might as well talk while we're on the move. The shadows tend to get restless if we stay in one place and, well, you saw one for yourself just now," Joy said. She held the orb with both hands again to show him. "Oh, and me carrying this thing certainly isn't helping so we definitely need to be on our way~! Let's get moving, bodyguard!"

Sora watched as Joy skipped over to the ladder and began to ascend it. He soon frowned and crossed his arms. "Bodyguard?"

* * *

 ** _A/N: Okay, so technically Inside Out's a Pixar movie but kind of the same thing, right? Actually, a strange thing I've realized is that I've never really cried watching a Disney movie (Moana may have made me come the closest) but I've teared up plenty of times with Pixar films (Toy Story 3, Coco, Inside Out, etc.). Speaks wonders about how well Pixar does things._**

 ** _Anyway, in the next chapter prepare to hear a lot about memories. The chapter should really be called Chain of Memories Redux honestly._**


	67. Journey To The Center Of The Heart

Chapter 66

Journey To The Center Of The Heart 

After reaching the second level of this strange illogical land, Joy stopped and waited for Sora to catch up before setting off again. For being designated bodyguard, Sora wasn't sure he would be able to keep up with the abundance of energy that Joy displayed.

"Right, so where do I begin? I'm one of the main emotions that exist deep within Stephanie's heart. I'm pretty sure every heart is like that, but I wouldn't really know. We can never really interact with other emotions outside of the system we live in. Not directly anyway," Joy explained.

"So you've always been here then? Inside her heart?" Sora asked.

"If by always you mean since the beginning, then no. I came into existence roughly five seconds after she was born, then my friend Sadness came a few seconds after. Those were Stephanie's very first tears. Then, one after the other, her other emotions began to manifest—Fear, Disgust, and Anger. Also the necessary components that make a heart a heart. That isn't to say we're the only emotions though, just the basic ones. There are more specific ones like Surprise and Boredom that work elsewhere."

"I mean, I didn't think a heart worked like that. It's kind of crazy to think that there are little people running around in my own heart," Sora said.

"We're not people. We're emotions!" Joy corrected.

"Yeah, but I can't really see you as anything else. I mean, you're here, right in front of me! And I'm talking to you!" Sora exclaimed in amazement. He couldn't keep the grin off his face just thinking about it. "So then, what exactly are you carrying? Was that snake after it?"

"Yeah. I won't bog you down with the details but it's called a core memory. Not like a normal memory, it's a very important and particular memory that defines who Stephanie is as a person. The core memories that form Stephanie's personality are also represented by… well, this!" Joy spread her arms out and looked around her. "We're on what is called an Island of Personality. This one is Tabletop Island because of Stephanie's memories of playing board games with her family but there are other islands of personality."

"Board games? Ah, I thought this flooring looked kind of weird, like we were on a chess board or something," Sora said.

"It's actually Snakes and Ladders. You ever played it?" Joy asked.

"No and if it's anything like this, I never will," Sora said.

Joy laughed. "I assure you, it isn't. But something's happened recently that's corrupted and twisted these Islands of Personality. It's almost like they're living and breathing, which is why that snake came to life and attacked me in the first place.

"So, because you don't know the rules I'll explain as best I can. The goal would be to make it to the end of the board, or the top of this island as it were. On that board there are multiple points with ladders which, if you land on them with the die roll required, you can use them as shortcuts to get to the end faster. However, if you land on the head of a snake, you have to go all the way back down to where its tail is. The snakes vary in length as well so it's possible you can be sent _waaaay_ back if you land on a longer one. Here though, it looks when you happen to step on certain tiles, they activate traps which actually summons them. Personally, it's not my favorite version of snakes and ladders, but if it means helping Stephanie, I'll go to very edges of her heart where the light doesn't shine as strongly if I have to."

"Well count me in. This means a lot to me too, and not just because of her mother. I want to see her smile again too," Sora said, quickening his pace so he could catch up. "So where are we headed anyway?"

"To the other islands where the other Core Memories are waiting, as well as my friends. Something happened at headquarters and we were scattered, just like that!" Joy snapped her fingers. "But before we were, we were each able to get our hands on one of Stephanie's core memories so we could protect them. The others should still have theirs on them… I hope."

Joy's voice tried its best to feign optimist even in the tiniest doubt, but for Sora it was just what he needed. Her presence was just what he needed. Alone, he very much doubted he could have undertaken this journey. He always knew it would be hard without Luna being with him, but with someone like Joy around, he wouldn't have to feel so lonely trying to accomplish something so huge. It was like being with Rhea again and diving into Luna's heart. Alone, he probably would have been terrified out of his mind. Together, the burden didn't seem so tremendous.

* * *

Luna intertwined her fingers with Stephanie's smaller ones in hopes that the warmth in her fingers could reach the lost girl. Not too long since Sora had entered her heart, Stephanie's breathing had become a lot calmer. It could have been wishful thinking, but Luna at least liked to think that she was aware of Sora's efforts in trying to save her. If Stephanie could feel that from the inside, then it was at least worth trying to reach her from the outside as well.

She looked up at watched as Ienzo paced back and forth, seemingly lost in his own little world. Then, suddenly noticing Luna's stare, he paused.

"I wouldn't worry. Sora's always jumping into situations without thinking, but he always finds a way to pull the impossible off. You'd think it would have caught up to him by now but I guess sanity finds it hard to catch up with insanity," Luna told him, and by extension Jayne who was sitting next to her.

"I don't doubt that, but concerns lie with the amount of darkness present in Stephanie's heart, as well as light for that matter. This time, he may have bitten off more than he can chew. Do you know about wrath and how it affects the heart? It comes from exposure to too much light or darkness. Apply pressure in just the right area and-" Ienzo suddenly snapped his hands together like a venus flytrap, causing Luna to jump slightly.

"It won't come to that. I believe in Sora. I believe in Stephanie. And so should you," Luna replied slowly.

"But we don't even fully know what wrath can do-"

"And when has that ever been an obstacle for us? Even if we don't fully know everything, just seeing Stephanie in pain makes me want to try anything I can. It hurts that I can only sit here, wondering what's going on inside her heart. I'm scared that Sora might never come back, but there's no point staying negative all the time, so here's what I'm gonna do. I'm going to cheer him and Stephanie on from the outside as much as I can, and I'm going to hope that my love reaches them both. Now quit being a wet emobag and come give your support!"

"Emobag?" Ienzo asked, more offended than Luna had expected him to be. "Emo is a genre of music elongated from the word 'emotional'. How could I possibly be a music genre?"

"Well you're only just proving my point. You're being way too sensitive about this, hence, an emobag," Luna said. She threw him a dismissive glance and looked away. "Look, I didn't make the rules. There's no use getting upset with me about it."

"You made a word up! Of course you have to take responsibility for setting the rules and definitions of that word!"

"I didn't make it up. It's just a word that got… phased out… of Alexandrian culture… a while ago," Luna answered in a tiny voice.

"Luna, Ienzo, look!"

Luna looked over to Jayne, not expecting to then look at Stephanie instead. A small smile, faint, but remarkable all the same. It was a strange thing to think about perhaps, but Luna couldn't help but think it all the same looking at her—that people's smiles were full of wonder, and even more so a child's. She wondered if that was what had drawn her to Sora in the first place.

* * *

 ** _Tabletop Island, Inside Stephanie's Heart_**

Sora had never particularly been afraid of heights. When you lived on a boring island for most of your life, you were encouraged to explore vertically as well as horizontally. But then again, he had never truly been tested when it came to his fear of heights either. Thus, when he and Joy came across a ladder serving as the bridge between two pieces of floating land—and over a wide canyon of nothingness at that—he had to admit he was more than unnerved.

He let out a whistle and nodded his head absently. "Yep, that's a long way down. Is there anything even down there? Death, I'm assuming."

"And probably a whole lot more. We call it the Memory Dump. As the name implies it's where forgotten memories eventually fade over time. They usually aren't too defining to affect someone. Just small things like the day you lost a certain tooth, unless the tooth fell out during an accident or something. For some reason, negative memories tend to be last when it comes to falling into the Memory Dump," Joy replied, seeming to want to look anywhere but below.

"But old memories can be remembered, right? They're just forgotten, not lost."

"Maybe… I suppose if someone else does the remembering for you then you could reconstruct it, but then would that really be your memory or would it be their memory?"

"Oh no. I'm not gonna like where this is going, am I?" Sora asked.

Joy chuckled. "Well it depends on you! People see things differently after all. Their version of events might be different than what you actually experienced, but since you've forgotten, you're relying on them to fill in the gaps. Speaking of gaps, I really wish we had more solid footing to cross."

"Maybe we can find another way across if you don't feel comfortable about it." 'But do we have time?', was what Sora wanted to add. It seemed Joy seemed to understand that without him having to say it anyway.

"No, it's alright. We- we just have to… remain positive and hope for the best," Joy seemed to put particular stress on these words, as though she were trying to convince herself that everything would be alright. If the purely positive part of Stephanie's heart seemed pessimistic about this, Sora wondered what chance he stood.

"Alright, I'll go first just to make sure it's stable. Oh, I have a question about… down there but, uh, I'll save for that later," Sora said. "Wish me luck."

"Wishing!" Joy shifted the orb to underneath her left arm to cross her fingers. Sora got on all fours and placed his right hand on the rail in front of him first before reaching for the left with his other hand. Slowly, he began to put one foot in front of the other, moving from rung to rung. The entire time he followed a simple but important rule: don't look down.

After what felt like forever, he reached the other side and fell on his behind, let out seconds of pent up anxiety in a single sigh.

"There you go. Easy," he said with closed eyes. After a few seconds, he opened his eyes again and looked over to Joy, raising his voice. "It's okay! Just… don't look down and, uh… take it easy. Slow and steady wins the race, just like the hare."

"Right. You make it sound like a cake walk," Joy said.

"Well, no, it's more like a ladder walk," Sora replied. When Joy stared at him with a none too pleased look, his parted lips slowly transitioned into a grin. "Just trying to help with the nerves."

"Not helping! Okay, it's alright… you can do this… just… don't look down." Joy gulped and took a few steps forward, placing her right hand down on the ladder. She bent low until her stomach was flat against the ladder and half-snaked half-tiptoed her body inch by inch. Immediately, she found a problem. Carrying the orb in her other hand made it much harder to rely on using her left hand. If she loosened her grip even the tiniest to grab onto the left rail, she risked dropping the Core Memory. She should have tried throwing it over to Sora before attempting this, but now that she was on the ladder she dared not even try it.

Sora also didn't want to say anything or even move for fear that a sudden shift in the air might somehow cause a butterfly effect that could mean the end of their journey right there and then.

Joy had almost reached the other side and was thinking of congratulating herself with a pat on the back when she got there. She had managed to do pretty well for someone who had been scared out of their wits not even a few moments ago. The confidence must have seeped back in with each successful step she took.

And then she realized something just before she reached the end. "Wait."

"Huh?" Sora raised a brow, not because of her interjection but because she decided to stop right before she got across.

"It _was_ the tortoise, wasn't it? Ah!"

"Oh, come on!" Sora yelled, running forward as Joy's legs slipped through the rungs. He reached out and managed to grab her right hand with his own and then moved in to grip it tightly with his left. "Was that really necessary?"

"Well I can't not speak my mind when something comes to me. I've always been like that," Joy replied.

"A time and a place…" Sora said through gritted teeth as he tried to help her up. "Argh… I'm trying but… you need to give me your other hand!"

Joy shifted her left arm a bit where the orb was tucked and somehow managed to drop it from her underarm to her hand. She hoped for the best and lobbed the orb over onto Sora's side. Relieved that it had landed safely, Joy reached out and took hold of Sora's left hand.

"Your palms are sweaty!" Joy exclaimed.

"I wonder why…!" Sora leaned back as far as he could and managed to pull Joy up onto the surface. He fell backwards and hit the ground though he was too exhausted to feel much of the impact. He lifted his head up and looked over at Joy who seemed to be recovering herself. "Alright. Let's not do that again."

"Duly noted," Joy replied. "But yeah, it was the tortoise who took things slow and steady, not the-"

"I get that," Sora said. He picked himself up and walked over to pick the orb up for her. When he scooped it up into his hand however, his muscles tensed up. His right eye flickered open and shut and he gritted his teeth. A strange and overwhelming feeling had overtaken him. Emotions and memories that weren't his own suddenly filled his mind. Memories that were happy, yet expressing some frustration. Soothing, yet also sad in hindsight.

 _For a certain amount of unknown time, he was somewhere completely different—at the dining table in Stephanie's house. He was not merely observing these events though. He found himself sitting at the table with Colette opposite him and a man that instantly clicked with Sora as being Stephanie's father. Sora looked on the table where, instead of plates as one would expect, there was instead a game board. Snakes and Ladders._

 _Sora looked down to his hand, clutched and small and not at all his own. In his hand, he held an object small and cubed. With a light chuck, the die was released from his hands and landed on the table. Just then, Stephanie's father stood up and stretched. The table jutted upwards a bit from his standing up, affecting the die's roll. Stephanie's father was by no means a huge man. He was tall and slender, but he knew how to appear big and mighty when he needed to be. It was this particular act that caused the die to land on a three. Three spaces away from the head of a snake that would take Stephanie's piece back three rows down._

 _Sora, or Stephanie, stood up. "That's not fair! You cheated, dad!"_

 _Stephanie's father looked as though he had just been offended. "Wow, that's a pretty big accusation, missy. All I was doing was stretching. I am an old man after all."_

 _"Liar! I was about to win and you couldn't stand being a big old loser!"_

 _"And you knew you were going to get the six you needed to win how?" her dad questioned._

 _Stephanie (or Sora) slightly retracted in her (his) seat at this. "I… I was feeling it."_

 _"Oh, you were feeling it were you? Didn't know you could use the force. Well, while you're feeling it, why don't you help me with this week's lottery numbers? I hear the cash pot just got increased again. Imagine what you and your mom could do with that munny?"_

 _"I expect it involves helping you pay for your expeditions and research with Ansem. Also don't encourage her to gamble," Colette chided._

 _"It's okay, mom. It's more like a fun guessing game. And I want to help pay the bills too so if my force powers can help make it easier then that's good, isn't it?"_

 _"Oh, Stephanie. You shouldn't even be thinking about stuff like that at your age. You just concentrate on getting good grades in class for now if you want to help us in the future." Colette leaned in and held up her pinky finger. "It's a long term plan, got it?"_

 _"Fine… but if you guys end up on the street one day, don't say I didn't want to help," Stephanie said, moving her pinkie forward to hook with Colette's. Her mother and father laughed at this._

 _"And when that time comes, mom and dad'll be counting on you to get us out of that rut, won't you?" her father asked._

 _"Mom, yes. You, not until you apologize for cheating," Stephanie said with a pout._

 _"Ooh, she's got you on the ropes now, Christopher. If she's anything like me, she knows how to hold a grudge until she's won," Colette said._

 _"Alright, alright. I promise I'll make it up to you. What say I bring you something absolutely amazing if Ansem signs me on for this expedition? Are we cool now?"_

 _"Only if it's like the best thing ever! I won't accept anything less," Stephanie said._

 _"Nor should you. In the meantime though, just focus on those grades like your mother said. Capiche?"_

 _"Pistachio," Stephanie replied with a grin._

It was with that final moment that Sora's view of Stephanie's parents began to melt away like candle wax on fast forward. He tried to reach out for them, but then something made him hesitate. It was the strange feeling of detachment, as though his body was not exactly his own. He could see the back of Stephanie's head just before the world around him reverted back to normal.

"Sora! Sora!" Joy was in front of him, shaking his shoulders. It took him a few seconds to realize that. "You're back! What a relief… I didn't think touching the Memory Core would have that kind of effect on you because it doesn't for me but it makes sense I guess."

"What… just happened?" Sora asked, looking around quickly before focusing on Joy.

"I think there was a memory leak. If one heart can connect with another then it's possible that the contents can spill out and seep into another person's heart. I've never seen it in action before though for obvious reasons. Interesting…"

"I didn't just taint her memories or something, right?" Sora asked.

"No, I don't think so. Those memories are frozen in time. Like they're glued to a biological clock of Stephanie's life. You probably couldn't interact with the memory, could you?"

Sora shook his head. "Okay, at least she's good then."

"Woah there! I didn't say you could rest easy! Just because you can't change them doesn't mean that strange presence that forced me and my friends out of headquarters can't. We need to be vigilant," Joy said. A violent tremor soon proved Joy's words to be the constant reminder of the day, like a heavy load that they would both be forced to carry.

"What was that?" Sora asked, steadying himself while placing a hand on Joy's shoulder.

"I think it know you're here. I'm guessing it somehow tied itself intrinsically into Stephanie's heart when it entered and has access to all her memories. Might not be the best idea to go memory diving any time soon, Sora," Joy said.

"Never intended it in the first place. Come on, let's move," Sora said, hopping up and down on the spot in an effort to mentally prepare himself.

"That was quick. How do you get pumped up so quickly. My legs still feel like jelly," Joy said, pointing downwards. They didn't just feel like jelly, but literally wobbled like it too.

"Want me to carry you?" Sora asked.

"Will you?"

"Pfft, and slow us both down? Stop being lazy and let's get to it," Sora said.

"Ugh, I am not made for this," Joy said, following after Sora. He wasn't so sure he was made for this either, but he better get used to it quick. He was in a whole different ball court with rules that could change at any moment.

Out from the darkness of the canyon below came a deluge of light rushing into the sky. This magnificent effusion quickly changed its course, heading straight for Sora and Joy. Sora summoned his Keyblade, something that seemed meaningless against such a threat. He didn't have to worry about the consequences though as he was a rush of darkness shoot up from the canyon below to intercept the light. The darkness wrapped around the light like a coil, twisting and swinging it every which way.

"Well, that's not something you see every day," Sora said, dispelling his Keyblade and backing away.

"And you know what? That's totally fine with me. Let's run!" a panicked Joy beckoned with the intention of drawing Sora's attention away from the two opposing forces clashing. The two turn and ran. Even if their legs were still shaking. Even if it hurt like hell to run. They needed to get off the island, and fast.

However, in their haste to make it off the island, they neglected to account for one thing. With darkness and light left behind, they had also left behind their caution. They weren't sure who triggered it, but it didn't matter. With the end just in sight, Sora and Joy found themselves obstructed by a snake even bigger than the last.

"Snake? SNAAAAAKE!" Joy squealed.

"Hey, the bigger they are…" Sora said, running forward with his Keyblade out. The snake wagged its tail towards him, which he rolled over and moved in to deliver a series of quick cuts. He stopped short of another attack and backed away as the snake lunged forward to strike. Climbing on its back, he ran up the hard scales of the reptile until he reached its head. He cut downwards a few times, taking a moment to steady himself in the interval between strikes. Of course, the snake doesn't take too kindly to Sora taking advantage of its limited field of view. With a single, powerful motion, it thrusted its head upwards, sending Sora flying into the air.

Big mistake.

A confident smile formed on Sora's face, and he lights up briefly before slamming down into the snake's head like a meteor. Swooning for a moment, the snake eventually collapses to the ground, leaving Sora with enough time to dish out a few more attacks. Sora pulled away eventually and stabs his Keyblade into the ground, waiting for some form of movement from the snake.

"Is it… dead?" Joy asked, looking at Sora but not wanting to move.

"Not sure. Stay where you are just in case." Sora gripped his Keyblade tightly again and moved forward slowly, keeping his left leg forward at all times. Every step he took he expected something, like this were a horror film and the monster would reveal itself as still being alive, and yet just like the protagonist of said horror film, he was still curious enough to walk straight into its clutches all the same.

It took the snake until Sora was practically leaning in to open its eyes, cold, silted amber, merciless. It lunged forward with its mouth open and Sora was there to meet it with the length of the Kingdom Key. Sora tried to pull back in an effort to draw the Keyblade away but the snake's mouth latched on to the weapon like a vice, determined to draw it and, at least its wielder's arms, into its mouth.

"Alright, you can have it if you want it so badly!" Sora yelled. He took his right hand off the Keyblade quickly and thrust forward with it, casting a Firaga spell into its mouth. The snake recoiled and let go, Sora taking the chance to run over to Joy's side. "This is ridiculous! Why is this ridiculous?"

"Don't ask me! I thought the ridiculous was more your area of expertise," Joy said.

"Huh. You're not wrong," Sora admitted. He had never thought about it like that, but he did seem to have a penchant, or at least tended to attract, the absurd. Still, unless he could pull something magical out of a hat right now, he wasn't sure how that piece of information could help him.

 _Think like crazy_! For some reason, he could hear Luna's voice in his head just then. Well, if she insisted…

"I've got an idea… kind of," Sora said.

"Kind of or…"

"Kind of," Sora repeated. He ran forward and clapped his hands to get the snake's attention. "Hey! Over here, Mr. big and ugly!"

"We really have to work on your name calling!" Joy shouted after him.

"It did the job, didn't it?" Sora yelled back, before turning and heading for the bridge. He cast a few magic spells to make sure he was keeping the snake's attention. Reaching the bridge connecting this island to the next, he burst off into a full on sprint to the other side.

Turning back one he reached the end, he saw the snake gliding gracefully over the bridge, taking its time. It seemed that objects or creatures that belonged to one island didn't really have a problem crossing into other islands.

He looked over at Joy and beckoned for her to come across. She gave him a look but at Sora's insistence, jumped onto the snake's tail and began her trek across. He waited until she was almost across and shot out his plasma arm from the Keyblade at the snake's body. He ran over to the side and dropped off the island, using the snake as a pendulum to move under the bridge and back over to end up just above it. He released the plasma arm quickly and transformed the Keyblade into a gauntlet, dropping down and delivering a devastating blow to the snake. This also had the additional effect of creating a shockwave that destroyed the bridge underneath, sending the snake's weight along with it. Landing on its large body, Sora ran up the snake and jumped before its head could fall off into the Memory Dump with the rest of its body.

"I'm getting the feeling you're used to pulling off these crazy stunts," Joy remarked as Sora joined up with her.

"Nah, just your imagination. Anyway, let's get going before we find out it can fly or something," Sora said, taking hold of her hand. It occurred to him as he did that he wasn't taking hold of a person, but an emotion, warm and bright like the perfect summer's day. If everyone knew what he felt at this moment as he ran with her, there probably wouldn't be a thing as sadness in the world. Then again, he supposed it wouldn't exactly be joy either.

* * *

 ** _Imagination Island, Inside Stephanie's Heart_**

"So you can see everything Stephanie's seeing, right?" Sora asked, as he and Joy walked through a brightly lit up amusement park. According to Joy, Stephanie had been to this place quite a few times, when Radiant Garden used to hold an annual fair back in the days of Ansem the Wise. According to her, Fear was on a complete freak out during Stephanie's first and second time.

"Yep yep! Why do you ask?"

"No, I was wondering if you knew what's been happening in Radiant Garden recently," Sora said. "I can't exactly imagine it's the best environment for a kid like Stephanie to be growing up in. She should be hanging out by the ice cream parlor with her friends after school or going on shopping trips with her mom. Instead, she hasn't seen her for a long time and doesn't know where she is, or whether she's okay. And she's lost one of parents already so that can't help her nerves."

"There was this tense trepidation in the control room for quite a while. Everyone was on the edge of their seats for the most part, like a bomb was about to go off or something. When someone set fire to Stephanie's house—the second time— there was just absolute panic all around. I was practically pushed out of the room by Fear. From then on, Fear just started planning for every contingency. I understand that he wants to protect her but I think he was going a bit too far, and the others didn't really like it. It felt like just as much a battlefield going on inside of Stephanie as there was one going on outside. And then that powerful force came and pushed us all out!" Joy explained.

"Have you guys ever been friends? I mean, your personalities are just so different from one another, or I suspect they are anyway," Sora said.

"It is strange. I'd say it's a tolerance at worst, but despite our differences, I think we like to work for Stephanie's best interests in mind and that's what keeps us together. Everyone except for Sadness anyway. She always seems to want to put Stephanie down and… well, she just has such a pessimistic look on life, you know. Like, I can tell that you're the same as me. You enjoy life and you can look past the bad and appreciate the good. Sadness isn't like that."

"You ever heard of the hare and the tortoise?" Sora asked.

"Uh, why are we talking about that again?" Joy asked.

"It's nothing," Sora dismissed. Of course it was something, otherwise he wouldn't have mentioned it, but to Joy it meant nothing at the moment. Sora wanted to hold off on saying anything further until he met Sadness.

The two soon came across a carousel ride and Sora stopped dead in his tracks when he caught sight of someone he knew quite well. Short and pink with tiny ears and a seemingly enduring worried look on his face, Piglet clasped on to the ride for dear life while a fiery bomb-like enemy straight out of a role playing game seemed intent on keeping him hostage.

"Oh d-d-d-dear! Help meeeeeee!" Piglet yelled while squirming about.

"Piglet!" Sora summoned his Keyblade and charged forward, twisting to deliver a quick strike to the Bomb. The fiery ball turned its back on Piglet and hovered slowly towards Sora, and was it just him or did it seem to be getting bigger?

Gripping his Keyblade tightly, he held it up in front of him and cast a few Blizzaga spells. The flickers of volatile flame on the Bomb grew thinner and not as bright with each cast until the fire from the Bomb itself was extinguished, turning it into something reminiscent of an almond nut. It dropped to the ground, splintering off into tiny pieces.

Sora ran towards the carousel and hopped on. "Are you okay, bud? You almost ended up a roast pig there."

"Ooh, thank you kindly for rescuing me! I was so worried," Piglet said.

"But I don't understand. Why are you here?" Sora asked, looking back at Joy to answers.

"Um, about that… you were the one who introduced her to the book, right?" Joy asked. Sora nodded. She gave a quick glance over at Piglet before beckoning Sora over. Once he was near, she added in a low voice, "This is Imagination Island so I think this is a version of Piglet that Stephanie created outside of the book, probably so that she didn't feel as lonely after her mother left her."

"It must have been so hard on her. So… he won't recognise me then?" Sora asked. It wasn't like something like this hadn't happened before anyway, but even if they were figments of Stephanie's imagination and not real, he still felt his heart sink when those he knew, no matter how fake they might be, were unable to remember him. Still, just because they weren't real, it didn't mean they didn't know him.

Deciding to try something, Sora walked up to Piglet again and knelt until they were at matching eye levels. "This might sound silly but… do you know who I am, Piglet?"

"Of course I do, Sora. How could I ever forget you?" Piglet asked without hesitation.

"Wow. Didn't expect that," Joy admitted as Sora hailed a silent victory.

"Figured this would happen. Stephanie's memories are their memories," Sora said. And he could even hazard a guess that they weren't even really Stephanie's memories but her perception of what Sora's relationship with Piglet and the others was like, which kind of made it cute in a way.

"You must experience a lot of this to be able to talk like it's a normal thing, huh?" Joy asked.

"What can I say? My enemies keep my life thrilling," Sora replied, unabashedly, before returning to Piglet. "So are Pooh and the others around, Piglet?"

"They all decided to go into that haunted house just over there." Piglet pointed to an old and slightly dilapidated looking house to their right. An orange light poured out of its windows, ebbing in brightness every other second. Piglet added in a tiny voice, "B-b-but I was too scared to go so I stayed."

"Aw, it's okay, little fella. Sora'll protect us. Right, Sora?" Joy looked to the brunette with gleaming eyes full of hope.

"Don't make me your crutch!" Sora bleated. Despite his protests though, he soon found himself leading the way into the haunted house with Piglet and Joy behind him. Having never been to one himself, Sora was looking forward to it, even more so one constructed by Stephanie's imagination.

As soon as he entered, hallways with doorways that seemed to twist at odd angles greeted him and his companions. Rooms he had thought would be orange as seen from the outside, turned out to be deceptive. They corridor was dark save for a faint blue light, just enough to make out the spooks in the dark.

"Trust Stephanie to make a place like this. Think I have something in my heart like this too?" Sora asked.

"If you do, I don't even want to know. I imagine it's much worse," Joy whispered. She was doing her best to keep Piglet close to her while trying to keep herself close to Sora.

"You'd probably be right on that. I wouldn't say I seen all the tricks in the book, but I've come closer than most. I'd say one of the more creepier places I've been to was an elephant graveyard. Desolate. You can sure as bet depressing too. Add a bunch of hungry hyenas to that and every single moment that you run, you feel as if your heart's trying to outrace you."

"That sounds terrifying. What's a hyena?" Joy asked. Before Sora could answer, the first scare that this house of horror held bared its ugly head in the form of a pop up jack-in-the-box. Joy and Piglet screamed and even Sora had to admit that gave him a little start. He gave a silly grin and looked behind.

"Hey, it's just a toy. These haunted houses are full of these kind of things. Er… animatronics, I think they're called. Just as long as you realize that everything here is controlled by a machine it's okay and it's totally not a machine, is it?" Sora asked after observing the pale faces of Joy and Piglet.

"B-b-b-b-"

"BEHIND YOU!" Joy finished Piglet's stuttering sentence. Sora could only look to his side the briefest of moments before ducking as a scythe flew over his head. He pivoted quickly and countered, swinging upwards with the Keyblade to cut through the moving clown box.

Sora slowly lowered his Keyblade and frowned. "Okay, take that back. Be afraid. Be very afraid."

"You think it's the light and darkness that's entered her heart doing this?" Joy asked. Sora had given her a more explicit account of what they were dealing with on their way to the amusement park.

"If it is, then Pooh and the others might be in danger. Let's move faster but stay alert, okay?" With that warning, Sora looked around and held his Keyblade forward, raising his voice as though he were shouting the heavens. "Piece of Kingdom Hearts, I don't know if you're listening but you better be because I'm only going to say this once. You can run from me or fight me all you want but making Stephanie's heart a battlefield to do it is going too far. Get out of Stephanie's heart now before you do something that you'll really regret."

Sora's demand went unanswered of course. He didn't think it would be nearly so simple as that, of course.

They stepped further into the building, if it even was still that for it felt like a whole other world, to the sounds of an out of tune piano playing somewhere in the distance. Sora's eyes wandered about the blue hue of the room. Danger seemed only a moment's breath away, and not knowing which exact breath that was bothered him.

"Say, you wouldn't happen to know what Stephanie would conjure up in her own imagination, since you live here and all?" Sora asked Joy. He hoped to at least break up the tense silence but he was also curious. He wasn't sure about the extent of this heart's powers but his experience on Tabletop Island clued him in on a possible answer to one of his questions. The piece of Kingdom Hearts couldn't just make anything up on the spot. It had to work within the frame of Stephanie's world. It was conductor, directing and steering the performance as it saw fit, but Stephanie remained its composer, putting those pieces there in the first place.

"Well, Fear and Disgust would probably know more than me about those things. I never really liked sticking around for the scary parts but let's see… she has a few toys that she plays around with every now and then. There's the Miss Dorothy set that her mother bought for her on her fifth birthday. It came with a scarecrow, a tin man and… oh…"

"Oh, what?" Sora asked carefully. Cries from somewhere ahead of them postponed whatever Joy was about to say. Sora took a few steps forward rather rashly and had to leap across, landing on his stomach as a scarecrow popped out from under the floorboard, breathing fire as it did so. Turning quickly, Sora aimed his Keyblade at the Scarecrow from the side and blew it off its hinges with fire magic of his own.

"You guys okay?" Sora asked.

"Why do I have the feeling you'll be asking that a lot by the end of this?" Joy asked back. A roar from deeper within followed by the another set of cries had their attention back on the task at hand.

"Because I probably will. Let's go," Sora said. He took off into a run, no longer being able to afford to be cautious. It didn't really occur to him that, being imaginary, his friends may not really be in danger, but he also couldn't risk that and, seeing as they looked and seemed really, it didn't really matter in his eyes.

Along the way they were met by all sorts of traps and animatronics that made Sora wonder just which of them Stephanie had seen in real life and which of them she had completely made up. Bats that launched themselves from a hole in the wall flew over their heads, forcing them to stay low to the ground. As soon as they left, Sora, Piglet and Joy spared little time in moving on.

Sighting the back of a lion straight ahead, Sora called out to it. The lion turned and growled at him, prepared to dig its claws into its newfound prey, but before it could do anything…

"Now, Tigger!"

Like a flash of lightning, a blur of blue and black stripes landed on the lion's head and then it was gone, with the lion an unconscious heap on the floor.

"Woo hoo! We did it!" Roo cheered, hopping up and down.

Tigger peeped through his hands. "We did? I mean, we did! Of course we did, after all, bouncing good is what us Tiggers do best!"

"Nice teamwork, Sora. We couldn't do it without you," Roo praised.

"I… uh, didn't really do anything but sure," Sora said with an awkward smile. "More importantly, where's Pooh?"

"We haven't really seen them around. We thought that they might be farther in," Tigger said.

"But this place is kind of giving me the creeps. I'm just glad Tigger's here with me," Roo said.

"Well, how about this. Why don't we all team up and find the others? It won't nearly be as scary with the five of us that way," Sora said. He would still have to do most of the work in the end but at least he could guarantee their safety better that way.

"Sounds like a party to me. Let's turn this scare house into a fun house," Joy said. While Joy's wish never came true in the end, things were considerably less scary than they were before. It still felt like death was an imminent thing, of course. That feeling never went away, but along with more friends by his side came the confidence to overcome each trial the heart piece threw at Sora.

By the time they entered a round room, dank and as gloomy as one might expect a dungeon to be, Sora hadn't been sure how far they had walked. The darkness and constant danger that lurked within had made it impossible to judge. All he knew was that he had walked a long passageway to his destination, and now that he was in an open room, he didn't quite know how to take it all in.

"Pooh, Rabbit, Eeyore, it's us!" Piglet announced, jumping up and down to get their attention.

Pooh looked up to the curved staircase where Sora and the group were and waved. "Why hello there. Have you come to search for honey with Pooh?"

"Pooh, we came here because we were trying to find you," Joy explained.

"Find me? But I was never lost to begin with. I knew exactly where I was. I think I do anyway," Pooh said.

"And… Fear, is that you?" Joy asked, tiptoeing to get a better look. The Emotion she was referring to in question was purple dressed in a smart sweater and bowtie. Fear was, surprisingly not how Sora had imagined him to be. He seemed quite laidback, a far cry from the obsessive, controlling Fear that Joy had made him out to be. He was also carrying another Memory Core in his hands.

"Oh, Joy! I have never been so happy to see you as I am now. Did the others get out safely?"

"I don't know. If you haven't met them then they must be on the other islands," Joy replied.

"Well, Pooh might not want out of here but I for one will gladly accept the help," Rabbit said.

"But Rabbit, the lovely owner of this place up there said she would cook up a batch of honey if we waited patiently," Pooh said, pointing to the ceiling. Sora looked up to the glass skylight where the moon's light shone through to see a silhouette clinging to it on all four limbs.

"Pooh, I say this as your dearest friend. You are a very bad judge of character," Eeyore said monotonously. Suddenly the figure dropped from the skylight and hit the ground, startling everyone else there.

"No… it can't be… it's-"

"Ms. Appleshaw!" Joy screamed.

"Who?" Sora asked.

"The history teacher who gave Stephanie her first F. And her first detention! She's the worst," Joy exclaimed.

"You've failed. No honey for you!" Ms. Appleshaw chided. She was the kind of teacher that Sora would have gone a mile to skip their class back on the islands.

"Oh bother. Where did I go wrong?" Pooh asked, scratching his head in confusion.

"Just did a re-mark, you've passed now let's go!" Fear yelled hastily. The group of four made quickly for the stairs (save for Pooh, he seemed more content with waddling to them) while Sora jumped from them and landed on the lower level. Ms. Appleshaw seemed unable to stand up, her legs bent at an odd angle. Instead, she crawled on the floor, a piece of paper in her hand with a fat red mark on it with a letter most children came to dread. But not Sora.

"Think I'm scared by that? Please. I eat Fs for breakfast," Sora said. He looked back at Joy. "Was that a good line?"

"You seemed rather proud of that, to be honest," Joy said, disappointment in her voice.

"It was joke. It was!" Sora insisted.

"Are exams are joke to you, boy? I'll set the lip on you straight!" Ms. Appleshaw yelled.

"No, allow me to educate you. Alright, that sounds better," Sora said. Using her hands, Ms. Appleshaw reached out and dragged herself towards Sora quickly. Sora aimed his Keyblade and fired off several rounds of magic at the crawling body. Ms. Appleshaw raised the hand with the report card, the magic absorbing into the page.

"Okay, magic is a no-go. Lesson learned," Sora mumbled, irritated by this outcome. And it didn't help that she was so low to the ground either. It rendered melee attacks quite slow and ineffective as well.

"Any other plan you got there?" Joy asked, watching him from the stairs.

"Yes. Run." Sora backed away and hopped up the stairs two at a time. Ms. Appleshaw was fast, and using her arms once more, propelled herself to follow after him.

"Well that's not very hero-like, is it? Oh!" Joy let out an exclamation of surprise as Sora grabbed her hand and dragged her away.

"Sometimes to be a hero you have to be a coward. Try and figure that one out," Sora said.

"I'll give it some thought as we run," Joy said. The two followed the path back down and with all obstacles that had tried to interfere before out of the way, it was a straight shot to the exit.

"I don't get it. Why did she… have to imagine her teacher without legs?" Sora asked. "I mean… it's either a thirty foot giant or… she's nake- actually, forget I said anything, I'll take legless."

"You've never had dreams with your teachers in them?" Joy asked. Just then, there was a shrill cry from behind them. Sora looked back to see Ms. Appleshaw gaining on them. She looked like a menacing spider in the dark.

"Of course. But they usually don't look like they're from a horror movie and are about to kill me!" Sora yelled. As he turned his head to face forward again, his eyes widened as he came face to face with a snarling lion. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as, out of instinct, he jumped over the lion and used its torso to vault over it, landing on the other side.

The lion seemed to continue on its way however and instead grabbed Ms. Appleshaw's outstretched left arm by its teeth. Ms. Appleshaw clawed desperately with her other hand for the ground, but the Lion's unshakable grip left her dragging her red nails into the darkness.

"Well that's one way to grab my attention when it comes to studying," Sora said.

"Do you have a one-liner for everything?" Joy asked.

Sora grinned. "Never leave home without 'em. Let's go join up with the others."

When the pair emerged from the haunted house, Joy let out a much overstressed sigh and was about to spread out her arms before promptly remembering she was carrying an orb in one of them.

Instead, she took to flopping down onto the grass. "I'm alive!"

"Yep. Can confirm," Sora said, letting out a laugh. "Am I all good or did I just have an interaction with the great beyond without even knowing it?"

Joy stood up and placed her hands on Sora's arms, getting in close to analyze his face. Sora felt his cheeks heat up and backed away.

"Uh, I'll take that as an A-OK," Sora said. He looked over to Fear, Pooh and his friends. "You guys got out okay, I take it."

"Everything's working just fine here! Hoo hoo! Thanks, Sora," Tigger said, bouncing up and down in a circle with his tail.

"So where are you headed now?" Piglet asked.

"We need to get off this island and find the rest of Joy's friends. Wanna come with? This company has room for more." Sora asked.

"Oh, can we? And perhaps we can play Poohsticks along the way," Pooh said.

"Of course," Sora said. He looked over to Joy excitedly. "I love that game. Didn't think dropping a bunch of sticks and watching them go down a river would be so fun but somehow, it just is."

"Stephanie did that too. It was so cute seeing her so excited," Joy said. Wasting no time, the group set off for the next island. Somehow, in light of Stephanie's condition, Sora's spirits could not have been higher at that moment. Hanging out with his friends of the Hundred Acre Wood, Joy and Fear had given him an elated feeling, where rescuing Stephanie seemed like the cherry on top.

But perhaps he was wrong to get his hopes up. Perhaps he was wrong to hope his journey would be as pleasant as he was hoping for. When he got to the bridge, the feeling of that looming presence forced him to confront reality once more.

Sora, Joy and Fear had crossed onto the bridge successfully. Tigger bounced forward next only to hit a barrier and fall on his back.

"Tigger, you okay?" Sora asked, running back to him.

"Ooh, never heard from anyone about an invisible wall being here," Tigger said, rubbing his nose. Pooh tried to come through next but he also hit the same invisible wall. Sora felt around in the same spot but could feel nothing.

"Huh? How did we even… is it that heart again?" Sora asked, looking back to Joy and Fear. Joy shrugged but Fear didn't seem so sure.

"Maybe not. Ah, I should have realized it sooner. Ugh, bad Fear. Bad! Stupid!" Fear said, hitting himself on the forehead with his hand over and over again.

Joy grabbed his wrists and held them in place. "Hey, stop that! Just tell us what the problem is."

"I should have realized it sooner," Fear repeated, looking back at Pooh and the others. "Stephanie's worst fear… It isn't Ms. Appleshaw or anything we just saw in that haunted house. Her biggest fear is being alone. Her father… her mother… they're gone, and all she has now for comfort are her imaginary friends."

"What? But surely she has friends at school. Right?" Sora asked, looking from Fear to Joy.

"Um, well…"

"She talks to them, of course, but she doesn't expect them to stay around forever. Friends come and go. In her mind, the friends she has now?" Fear nodded towards Pooh. "They won't. Almost every day since her mother disappeared, she's gone into that book. Lost in a perfect world where she doesn't have to fear loss. Did you know that?"

Sora shook his head and looked over to Pooh. "I didn't…"

"Is something wrong, Sora? You look ever so sad," Pooh asked.

"Pooh…" Sora said, lowering his gaze. He reached out and took Pooh's hand into his own. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Sora… I don't quite understand what's going on but I've known you long enough to know that I'll always be right here with you," Pooh said, pointing to his own chest. Sora's eyes lit up at this, tears beginning to escape from what he had tried hard to conceal. He rubbed his at his eyes and let out a sniffle before looking back at Pooh with a smile.

"And I'll always be with you too," Sora said, placing a hand on his own chest. He transitioned it to wave. "Well, till we meet again."

"I look forward to the day, my dearest friend," Pooh said. He and the residents, confined to their imaginary world, waved, as Sora took off and made a resolute, but difficult, decision not to look back.

* * *

 _ **A/N: That feeling when you turn an Inside Out chapter into a Winnie the Pooh chapter. Anyway, here's a big meaty chapter for your consumption, hope you like it. Next up on the list are Sadness, Disgust and Anger and of course whatever's going on outside of Stephanie's heart too.**_


	68. The Day My Father Left Me

**_A/N: So where was this chapter, you ask? Consumed by the dark powers of Amazon Prime, of course! Too easy to resist, no, I came down with a case of the flu and wasn't really motivated to spend my time behind a computer sniffling and sneezing. But, thankfully you have a two parter to look forward to, starting with this chapter, of course. So, let's finish Inside Out. Also, I suppose I should give some credit to the fact that Kingdom Hearts III has finally gone gold! Now after five years of waiting (or 10 if you're THAT person), the wait's finally coming to an end. The artwork with Sora (which I assume is going to be on the main menu) is also so frickin' beautiful._**

* * *

 **Chapter 67**

 **The Day My Father Left Me**

 ** _Care Island, Inside Stephanie's Heart_**

Silence hung in the air like an anvil suspended by rope above Sora, Joy and Fear's heads. No doubt this had come about out of respect to their current situation, but no one seemed to know how to diffuse that tension. Where they were probably trying to give Sora some time to let the pain dull, it really only made it all the more obvious that it was there. Something had to change and he had to be the one to do it.

"Alright, listen up. It's fine. You can say something because as it stands now… I'm not gonna lie, it's painful. Please tell me we aren't planning on being like this the whole way," Sora said.

"But isn't it normal to give people time to breathe? You don't have to force it if you don't want to, Sora. Your face told me all I needed to know," Joy said. She was compassionate and understanding, like a worried mother. That was fine, but it wasn't what Sora needed right now.

"Well, you're not wrong but I'll also probably feel bad if we say nothing either. It's best to enjoy the company you do have rather than wishing for company that isn't there. I'll meet Pooh on the outside. So will Stephanie, but I need to focus on saving her first and the best way I can do that is in the presence of laughter, not yearning. The road here on is travelled with happy faces, got that?" Sora encouraged.

Joy beamed at him and threw her fist up in a victory pose. "Right, Stephanie is counting on us. I won't let her down, or let anyone get me down. Don't you dare get me down, Fear. Nope. Nope! I'm not listening!"

"I wasn't even talking!" Fear complained, his mouth slack-jawed.

"So what kind of island is this one? This couldn't look any different from the last island if it tried," Sora said. Golden fields waved back and forth as a gentle breeze swept through them. Fences covering large stretches of land contained animals from small rabbits and squirrels to sheep to horses of different breeds.

"Welcome to Care Island. This island came about when Stephanie was five and was put in charge of tending to the class's pet rabbit. She looked after poor Carrot like he was her own. It was so cute just watching her fascination with him," Joy said.

Sora chuckled. "C-carrot? Really? Originality is alive and well in the world."

"It was kindergarten! What do you expect?" Joy defended.

"I kid, I kid. Carrot's a cute name. Is he around here somewhere?" Sora asked. "My family has a dog named Pascal. He wasn't called that at first but that's a long story. So, Stephanie sees herself as a carer… maybe she has a career as an animal tamer in her future, or a vet."

"I would one hundo per cent support her in whatever she did, except maybe construction, or being a stuntwoman, or a firefighter or-"

But Joy leaned her weight against Fear in an effort to distract him. "Even those endeavours we'll support her in! Hey, Sora? Could we stop for just a wee bit and play with these adorable critters? It's not every day I get to leave headquarters after all."

"What? You can't just come and see them whenever you'd like?" Sora asked.

"It's not like we have replacements. We always have to be there to make sure Stephanie's okay," replied Joy with a frown.

"Wow. You guys don't get tired of working all the time?" Sora asked. His eyes were on them as he dragged the tip of his shoe across the soil.

"No, not at all! We love what we do. We love Stephanie. When you do things you enjoy for work, I suppose it doesn't really feel like work. It's life!" Joy said. "Also I get to see a lot of interesting things that Stephanie sees, like when you took her to see other worlds. Sherwood Forest, hanging out with Olivia and Basil, going to that monster factory… you opened up whole other worlds to her and we're incredibly grateful for that. I think now she might even want to go out and explore other places like you do. She talks a lot about you to Pooh and the others."

"Maybe when she's older then. Since the worlds are together again there's nothing stopping her and other children like her," Sora said. He could see it now—a new generation of explorers flocking to other lands and learning new things, both about their surroundings and themselves. And if they liked a particular place they could settle there and make it their new home, just like he and Luna had discussed. Who would ever want to stay in the same place after all? See the same things, walk the same paths day after day… It was a brand new age but for it to be a reality, Sora would have to fight for it.

"Yeah, I think that would be nice for her. Making new friends with different experiences from her, like Olivia. It's probably what her father would want too," Joy said, swivelling left and right with a sheepish grin. "And me as well."

"Then I promise I won't let you down. I have to save her first… though…" Sora said. His face screwed up in confusion as he looked past Fear and Joy. "Er... errrrrrr…"

"What is it, Sora?" Joy asked. She turned around, her mouth falling agape at the sight of a giant rabbit hopping towards them. "Carrot! You're so… big!"

"Must have eaten a lot of carrots to look like that," Sora said. He raised his hand and began waving. "Hey, big guy! How's it going?"

The rabbit didn't respond. Obviously. Carrot stopped and looked about, his face twitching excitedly, beady black eyes bouncing from one person to the other.

"One day, this fella here went missing from class. It started the week prior when a bunch of kids, bullies really, in Stephanie's class released the rabbit from its hutch, probably as a stupid prank or something. She and her class searched the entire day for him before eventually finding him… somewhere, I can't really recall but it was Stephanie's teacher who found him. The week after though, the rabbit went missing again."

"Those kids again?" Sora asked.

"No. This time it was Stephanie. She was so worried that they would try something like that again that she secretly snuck in during the evening when no one was there and rabbit-napped Carrot. Obviously, she couldn't let her parents know about it either so she kept Carrot up in her room and fed her. To her credit, she was pretty successful at it too… for a day. I guess mothers have a certain intuition with these things, but she figured out pretty quickly that Stephanie had brought a guest a home."

"Yeah, somehow I doubt intuition really had much to do with it," Sora said with a doubtful grimace. "I mean, I don't doubt that mothers know these things. But kids are… well, if she was anything like me at that age… well, we're not exactly good at keeping secrets. So what exactly happened in the end?"

"Well, fortunately her teacher recognized that Stephanie hadn't taken Carrot out of ill will and didn't punish her for it, but she also wasn't completely let off the hook. Her teacher told her that taking care of the class rabbit was a class effort and that they had to work together if they wanted to make Carrot happy. Plus, Stephanie hadn't really taken into account how her other classmates would feel either. It taught her the importance of trust and empathy. Not a bad trade if you ask me," Joy said.

"I bet she was really sad to give him up though," Sora said.

Joy sighed. "Yeah… and admittedly so was I… but at least he's here in her memories!"

"Still, looking at him now… doesn't something… look off to you?" Fear asked.

"Yes, he's big," Joy said.

"That's not what I- ugh, forget it. I'm probably just imagining things," Fear said.

"It looks like he wants to take us somewhere," Sora said, watching amusedly as Carrot bent forward. "Well, should we?"

"I don't think we really have a choice," Joy said, pointing behind Sora. Wisps of dark energy were amassing in front of them, interacting and mingling with each other to create a howling wind. It swirled like a tornado and within its center, Sora could see something. A pair of eyes whizzing about in the darkness. Sora could feel it. Its eyes were on them. He didn't even know what it was and yet he could sense its hunger.

"Wrath…" Fear and Joy said in unison.

Sora shot them a confused look. "Wrath?"

"An emotion with such malice, such misanthrope, that it wishes nothing but destruction on the world. It's basically the recluse of us family of emotions," Fear said. "Oh, this isn't good. If it catches us…"

"Wrath…? Hey, where are you going? Wait for me!" Sora yelled, turning to follow after Joy and Fear who had broken off into a run before he could even perceive it. In the end, Sora, Joy and Fear managed to climb onto the giant Carrot and, clinging to his fur, set off through fields while the tornado approached them.

"You said that thing was called Wrath? Is it normal for Stephanie to have an emotion like that?" Sora asked, trying to look around to get a closer look at the tornado.

"I don't know. I-It was strange. I'm pretty sure I was the first emotion to pop into existence when Stephanie was born but, I don't know why, but somehow I sensed I wasn't alone. I felt something watching me from the shadows. I didn't know what it was then, but now I know. It was Wrath. But I don't know why it was there. It was almost like it had been there even before Stephanie was born."

"An emotion born before its host? Is that even possible?" Sora asked.

"I don't know, Sora, why don't you ask it? In any case, that thing was sealed away. It was supposed to be sealed away so I don't know how it got out," Joy said. "Just, whatever you do, don't look directly into its eyes."

"Err, let's say I did look into its eyes, hypothetically speaking. What should I expect?" Sora asked, uncomfortably.

"Well, if you had looked _directly_ , you probably wouldn't be here with us right now," Fear said.

"Fair point, but if that thing's supposed to be locked up then we can't just leave it to do what it wants inside Stephanie's heart. We need to fight that thing head on," Sora said.

"You wanna fight that thing? And just how do you plan to do that?" Fear asked.

"When I think of that I'll let you know," Sora said after a lengthy pause. He heard Fear sigh behind him but he kept his eyes focused on the Wrath and summoned his Keyblade. Now he thought about it, he had heard something about wrath from Merlin once. It was what had affected Luna's heart once too before he and Rhea had jumped in to rescue it, but it hadn't taken the destructive shape of what he saw now, or at least he hadn't seen it as such. Had her wrath been there from the start as well?

Wisps of darkness began to shoot out of the tornado one by one, slow at first but quickly gaining speed. Sora cut through the air again and again, sending ripples of light that smashed into the darkness, causing both forces to evaporate. He thrust the Keyblade forwards, sending out an arc of lightning that cut through the shadows like a knife and blew a hole straight through the tornado.

"It's slowing down!" Sora yelled.

"Good! I know we said it might be impossible to beat that thing but we also didn't have you. We might actually stand a chance! Hey, isn't that..." Joy held her hand above her eyes and leaned to her right slightly. Eventually she dropped her hand and grinned. "It is! It's Sadness!"

Sora looked to where Joy was pointing to see a figure small and blue walking around with her face down and a glowing orb in her hands.

"Uh, how do I get this thing to stop. Carrot? Carrot, we need to get Sadness!" Joy hit the rabbit repeatedly with her hand, but it failed to register her touch nor the urgency of her request. She threw her hands up in frustration and looked to Fear and Sora. "Looks like we aren't getting off until the end of the line."

Sora looked over his shoulder at Sadness and made his decision quickly. Undaunted by the challenge he would no doubt face by his act of reckless daring, Sora leapt off Carrot's back and cut through the fields of maize on his way to the blue emotion. Cries from Joy, of course, went ignored.

From behind him he heard the rustling of maize. As he emerged out of the field, he saw wisps of darkness flying next to him. As they moved in towards him, Sora thrust his Keyblade from side to side, dispelling the remnants of Wrath.

"You guys really have it out for me, don't you? Oh, wait. Wrath, duh," Sora muttered. Once he was sure he was clear of enemies, he banished his Keyblade and put all his attention on cutting through the air as he sprinted past cows, horses and the like. He didn't even want to think about how they fared in Wrath's path.

"Sadness! Hey! Hey!" Sora called for her as he ran. The dejected looking emotion looked up though no hope glimmered in her eyes when she saw him.

"Huh? Who are you… wait, I know you. You're Sora. But how are you here? I'm so confused," Sadness said.

"There's plenty of time to explain, but we need to get to the other side of the island now," Sora said, reaching her side.

"It's pointless. I mean, it's nice to see another face around here, don't get me wrong. All I had was the animals, but I just can't be positive about this. Everything's going wrong right now," Sadness said.

"Wow, Joy wasn't kidding… okay, well, I know it looks gloomy but Stephanie's counting on you. On all of her emotions. I won't let her heart be torn to shreds. You need to trust me," Sora said.

Sadness seemed to falter between two choices through the lens of her thick glasses before replying.

"I'll… I'll try."

"That's all I ask," Sora said. He turned around to see the wisps of darkness coming towards them. He summoned his Keyblade again and took a deep breath. "Stay behind me. We're going to move fast so get ready."

It was nasty. That was the best way Sora could describe it. Wave after wave jumped him and Sadness. Their hatred, their wrath, was almost choking. More than once, Sora had found himself overwhelmed by their presence. Nonetheless, Sora kept on the offensive, flinging his arms left and right, cutting through everything in sight as he battled his way to what he hoped was safety.

His arms began to ache after a while, but it only caused him to tighten his grip on the Keyblade and swing harder. He kept on his toes as he did so. It was much easier to take advantage of both height and the space around him when he did. With Sadness being so small as well he didn't have to worry too much about having to protect her as much so long as he remembered to keep her out of view.

He twisted his Keyblade and thrust forward, casting the same spell of arc lightning that cut through the enemies like a great canyon and cleared their way. The waves of darkness that were still left however, filled in the canyon and charged for him like a rush of water.

"So you're gonna wear me down, huh? Is that the plan?" Sora growled. "If you think you can win the battle of attrition against me, you've got another thing coming. Come on!"

Taking bold, assertive steps, Sora raised his Keyblade and began swiftly cutting his way through. It was as if a second wind had rejuvenated the fire inside him. Unlike before where each strike had felt slow and decisive, these had taken on a whole different form. They were quick and transitioned seamlessly. His Keyblade became a flash, no, a blur of light lost in darkness. This was how he was used to fighting.

"Sadness, duck!" Sora told her quickly. He couldn't afford to check if she did as she was told. He leaned backwards slightly before spinning and unleashing a circle of fire that expanded outwards. The rest of the wisps disappeared as they were caught in its ember embrace and soon the flames too disappeared, leaving only charred crops and Sora and Sadness standing in the middle.

Sadness opened one eye after the other slowly and looked around her in disbelief. "I can't believe I'm still alive."

"Told you I'd keep you safe. Now let's go before that tornado gets any funny ideas. Joy and Fear are waiting," Sora said. "Um, do you mind if I pick you up? It'll probably be faster."

"Will you be gentle?" Sadness asked.

"Err, yes?" Sora asked. It hadn't meant to come out as a question but the idea of picking up someone because they were small was an awkward one to him.

After some deliberation, he picked her up and held her to his chest, like a baby. It was weird, he couldn't help thinking as he ran, but he didn't really have a choice in the matter and there really was nothing to be prideful about in this situation anyway.

Soon enough, he could spot Carrot and the others up ahead, near the bridge to the next island. He looked down at Sadness.

"You know, you are surprisingly light," Sora said.

"Please don't make this any more embarrassing," Sadness replied. He chuckled and continued on his way. Ahead, Joy beckoned for them with her arm quickly, her teeth gritted. Then her mouth parted as she looked somewhere behind him. Sora was barely able to turn his head in time to see it. The flying cow slammed against the back of his head and he momentarily blacked out.

When he awoke, he found Sadness next to him and the Memory Core trailing a few feet away from them. His head still throbbing, he rolled onto his back and looked left to see the tornado heading towards them. He crawled over to Sadness's side and summoned his Keyblade, aiming it for the centre of Wrath. He didn't expect much, but he couldn't think of much else to do at the moment. All he knew was that he couldn't give up hope. Not now and not ever.

Before he could process it, Joy burst past them and threw up her free hand in front of the tornado. "You two need to get going. I'll- erm, distract it… somehow!"

"Are you crazy? That thing'll swallow you whole!" Sora yelled.

"Crazy? I don't know. Maybe. I don't even know what I'm really doing yet. I just wondered, 'what would Sora do' and this is what came to me. Is this your thing? If it isn't then… well, maybe it's my thing. Sadness, keep this safe," Joy said, pushing her Memory Core into the Sadness's other hand before spreading out her arms again.

"Joy, don't!" Sadness cried, reaching out for the blue-haired emotion.

Joy gave her a sad smile and looked at Sora. "I'm counting on you to get me out of this Sora.

I believe you can do it. I'm not even sure if you really can. Look at me with the misguided sense of optimism, heh, but now isn't exactly the time for doubts, is it? It's time to take a stand."

"Joy…" Sora said.

"I'll keep fighting, so keep the others safe, okay? Stephanie's Memory Cores too. We lose even one and… I suppose you can imagine the rest," Joy said. She turned to the tornado and whistled, jumping up and down. "Hey, Wrath, you big dummy. You'll never wipe the smirk of Stephanie's face so long as I'm here. I'm the one you want, or maybe you aren't as big and tough as you think you are!"

Sadness stepped forward in dismay, watching as her friend ran in the opposite direction to lure Wrath away. Sora took note of her disappointed expression and looked over to the bridge where Carrot and Fear were.

"We'll save her, but right now we need to trust what her heart says and go and find the others," Sora said.

"Her heart? But we're emotions. We don't have hearts. We're what make up a heart. One girl's heart," Sadness said.

"Well, I can't say whether that's true or not, but I won't let her sacrifice be for nothing. I believe there's something there, telling her to do what she's doing. Sometimes all any of us can do is try, even if it might not work out in the end. I think it's the same for you as well.

Let's use the time she's given us to make things right," Sora said. Despite his words, he knew it was wrong to say that. If every person felt the need to sacrifice themselves every now and then, there would be no one left. It shouldn't have to be that way, but strangely enough, Sora felt like things would be alright.

Eventually, Sadness seemed to ease up on the suggestion. Not completely, but enough for Sora to get her to move and soon they reached Fear, who had jumped off Carrot, as well as the rabbit, who was digging at the ground, over by the bridge.

"She's just about as crazy as you! I tried to stop her. I TRIED! But once she makes her mind up, you just… can't… CHANGE IT!" Fear snapped. His eyes were a frenzy, his walk comically odd, like he could collapse from a heart attack at any second.

"It's what happens when you have something to fight for. I wasn't going to take that away from her," Sora said.

"I just hope you're right. I don't want to get to the end of this just to find that we've awoken a moodier Stephanie. No offence, but I wouldn't trust you, Anger or Disgust to handle Stephanie if her life depended on it. Might as well just ask the last one of us left to remember to turn off the lights before we leave," Fear said to Sadness.

Sadness put a finger on her chin. "I mean… I think I could do a pretty good job with

Stephanie. Maybe. Probably. Wait, I'm not too sure now…"

"You guys think we could leave this island any time today?" Sora asked.

"Well, Carrot's too big to take us across the bridge so I guess this is where we leave him. I hope he'll be alright here by himself," Fear said.

"Uh, did you say 'he'?" Sadness asked. "But Carrot's a girl."

"Huh? Look, now's no time to fool around. I mean, the rabbit standing in front of us is clearly- oh, that's- that's a girl," Fear concluded as he looked under Carrot.

"Female rabbits tend to have a large fold of skin under their chin. I thought it was obvious," Sadness said.

"How was it obvious? Was it obvious to you?" Fear asked Sora who shook his head in response. But Sora knew next to nothing about rabbits, so when Fear and Joy had mentioned that something was up, Sora couldn't have begun to guess what.

"But she also looks the same as the other Carrot, so I guess it was easy to mistake them. I don't know why Stephanie would have another rabbit that looks exactly the same as Carrot though," Fear said.

Sora had a theory, but he would rather not be right about it, because if it were true then it would have been a horrible thing by her teacher to do. It had been the teacher who had 'claimed' to have found it after all. He didn't want to jump to conclusions either, but if those bullies were the culprits, maybe they had no idea what they were doing at the time or maybe they had taken a prank one step too far... But Sora chose not to disclose this theory of his to the others, so as not to sour the mood. The impending threat of Wrath in the distance helped too.

* * *

Luna frowned and moved to grip Stephanie's hand tightly. After a while, her grip loosened and she looked across the bed to Jayne, a look of dismay on her face. Stephanie's temperature had suddenly dropped. Her fingers, intertwined between Luna's own, previously warm and an evidence of life from the young girl, had dissipated and become cold. Now, she certainly didn't doubt Sora's abilities. She wasn't so foolish as to think something like that after spending so much time with him, but if he was trying to scare her he was doing a pretty good job. It just wasn't something she needed right now when she was trying to be the life of this otherwise slightly pessimistic group.

The door opened for the second time that afternoon and Naomi entered with a duffle bag carrying what Luna presumed was Jayne's stuff. She looked slightly troubled and looked anywhere but directly at any of them, as though she were afraid of being implicated with a bunch of criminals if she were to look even the slightest.

"You weren't followed, were you?" Jayne asked.

"Well I reckon if I kept looking behind me I'd attract more attention than just going about my business, don't you think?" Naomi said, huffily.

"That would be the logical conclusion, I guess."

Setting the bag down in front of Jayne, Naomi folded her arms and gave her friend an impatient stare.

"Thanks, Naomi. I knew I could count on you," Jayne said.

"Not that. You didn't think to tell me then that I would find a body lying in a pool of their own blood when I got in?" Naomi asked.

"Well I told you to go straight to my room, didn't I? Not my fault you took a detour," Jayne replied.

Naomi stared at her incredulously. "Oh, so it's my fault now? Forget it! I don't want to know and I don't want to get wrapped up in whatever mess you've got yourself into. How's Stephanie doing?"

"Don't exactly know. You have eyes though so I don't exactly need to tell you there hasn't been an improvement," Jayne said. "I mean, there hasn't, has there, Luna? I don't know about all this magicky-pokery stuff so maybe you can feel something I can't."

Luna laughed. "No. Same as before. Sora will come through though. He's just being real slow about it. Stephanie, if you can hear me, tell that lazy bones to hurry up and wake you already!"

"Luna," Ienzo called to her, almost quietly in comparison to her own voice. "Your group—The Wayfinders… you have a plan to get into Radiant Garden?"

"Neuge and Yen Sid seem to, yes. As for whether it works or not-"

"If you can accept that there may- no, will be casualties, and I'm not talking about either side either. This is Horus' turf. They won't make it easy to pick them out, because if I were them, I would use every resource available to make sure you couldn't take this town. That includes the citizens of this town," Ienzo said.

"Human shields…" Luna whispered.

Ienzo gave a nod. "It's an obvious weakness and one they'll exploit given the opportunity. You can't risk an all-out war on the streets. Not unless you're prepared to risk everything."

"It's a dilemma alright, but I trust Neuge. She'll make the right choice," Luna said. She rested her arm on the rail of the chair and looked at him. "But… it never hurts to have a backup plan, right? Our opponents think two steps ahead, we think three. Got any ideas, smart guy?"

"Well, now that you ask, you need to make contact with the restoration committee without being seen, correct? But you can't guarantee how the patrol will be at that particular time," Ienzo said.

"Yep, we'd need a way to meet with them. Squall as well," Luna said.

"If you can't go by land, have you considered going under it?" Ienzo asked. "There's still a lot of construction equipment left over from the restoration of the town, including an excavator drill."

"Then if we can get that outside of the walls we can drill in from the outside all the way into the underground caverns!" Luna finished for him, nodding as her appreciation of the plan grew. Then she paused and frowned. "But how are we going to get it outside. You're proposing we take it in the middle of broad daylight?"

"It's too dangerous either way for you and Sora to get involved. Leave it to myself, Dilan and Aeleus. All you need do is tell Neuge and the others to wait for the call from one of us," Ienzo said.

"You know you're taking a big risk by doing this, right? If they catch you, I don't exactly think there'll be any talk of holding an exchange for hostages," Luna said.

"And yet, when it comes to minimizing risk and maximizing reward, let's not sugar-coat details, it's still mildly preferable to the alternative," Ienzo said.

"I don't want to pick and choose who lives and who doesn't. That's not fair," Luna said.

"Which is why you're not choosing. I don't mean any offence by this, but it is our town and we'll do whatever we can to protect it. If there's anything I regret in my past it's putting the needs of myself before others. Now, I have a chance to correct my course. Really the only thing going to waste anyway would be this brain of mine stuffed with ideas. But it doesn't matter now. Without Even there isn't much I can do with them by myself anyway."

"Even? Well, him being creepy aside, I don't think that's true. I think there's a lot you could do without him, especially with a dedicated team by your side. He doesn't own your ideas and you don't owe him an obligation to hide them," Luna said.

"Perhaps you're right, Luna, but that still won't change my mind. There are just more important things to worry about right now. My ideas probably aren't the first of their kind and no doubt they won't be the last," Ienzo said.

Luna turned from Ienzo and looked to Jayne who had taken a cloth from her bag to wipe the sweat off Stephanie's forehead. Luna squeezed Stephanie's hand, hoping to put all her love and reassurance into it.

"Jayne… are you sure you know what you're getting into?" Naomi suddenly asked. "I mean… I worry about you. I don't want you to get into trouble. Please don't get her into trouble."

"Naomi, you might not like it, but we all have to pick a side at some point. A pair of men, guards employed by Irva Torvald, tried to kill this girl. They tried to murder a child, Naomi. That's something I can never forgive them for. If I could, I'd gladly kill every last one of those bastards and it annoys me that I'm powerless to do so. But you know what does make me feel good? Finally knowing where I stand. I refuse to believe in a Radiant Garden where these guys get to define its history."

Naomi's hands tensed around the foot of Stephanie's bed. Luna could tell that Naomi's mind was screaming at her to walk out of that door right now and forget everything that had just happened. But it was in the eyes that Luna could see the allure of Jayne's words taking hold.

"Okay. I mean, I don't want to get 'taken away' or however they refer to it as nowadays but if I have to worry about something like that in the first place it can't be good, right? So against my better judgement, I'm sticking with you. Tramp on my rights, shame on me, tramp on an innocent child, well you only have yourself to blame, so I say," Naomi said.

"You have never said that before now," Jayne said.

A cheeky smile appeared on Naomi's face. "And neither have you, so consider it trademarked from now on."

* * *

 ** _Explorer's Island, Inside Stephanie's Heart_**

Sadness shifted the Memory Cores uncomfortably under her arms as she followed after Fear. From behind her, Sora could make out the small emotion wobbling a bit as she struggled to balance both her orb and Joy's. He remembered what had happened when he had taken hold of Joy's Memory Core. He had almost lost sight of himself, present and past melding together to become what had been akin to sleep paralysis.

"Having trouble? Let me carry one," Sora decided, holding his hand out.

"Are you sure? It's fine, I can carry it-"

"Really, it's no problem for me. We need to pick up the pace anyway," Sora said. He wasn't exactly sure how he would deal with it when the time came, but he imagined as long as he told himself that it wasn't real, everything would be okay. Sadness, not knowing of the anxiety threatening Sora inside nor its meaning, held out the Memory Core on the left for him to take with a meek little smile. It wasn't quite Joy's beam, but it was adorable in its own demure way.

Once it was in his hands, Sora felt himself being hit with the same sensation as before. He shook his head quickly and began walking again.

"Is everything okay, Sora?" Sadness asked.

"Yeah… yeah. Let's keep going," Sora told her without turning to look. Every once in a while, however, he stopped just short or leaned against a nearby object. His vision kept fading in and out, replacing the view of Gummi blocks, CRT televisions and other supplies with a room. Accompanying that room were voices swimming in and out of his head. He had no idea how he had managed to resist its apparitions until now.

He turned to his left, watching as a man he knew all too well stepped through a door that kept appearing and disappearing along with the rest of the house. Ansem the Wise, his posture taut like a king, still managed to possess a somber air about him as he looked anywhere but on the faces of the subjects who had invited him into their home. Not once did he consider taking a single step forward past the coat rack by the front door.

"Lord Ansem, what a pleasant surprise," Colette said. "What do I owe the occasion?"

"Please, Colette, it's just Ansem," he replied. His expression changed to a gentle one as he looked down at Sora, or if this were just like the other memory, he would be enacting the role of Stephanie. "And how are you, Stephanie?"

"I'm okay, thank you. I was about to braid mom's hair," Stephanie said.

"That's lovely. Are you going to become a hairdresser when you're older then?" Ansem asked.

"No way! I want to be an explorer just like dad!" Stephanie exclaimed. "Is he here with you?"

Ansem's eyes bounced from Stephanie to Colette and back, and then again as though he were unsure what to say next. Colette seemed to understand what he was trying to convey and turned to look at Sora.

"Steph, isn't it about time you go and clean your room?"

"But-"

"No buts, young lady. It's not going to clean itself, is it? Sometimes we just have to get things done, even if we don't want to, otherwise we just end up having to do more later," Colette said. Stephanie pouted but nodded and ran up the stairs. It was at this point that Sora stopped in front of one of the many junk piles that the island possessed.

"Sora?"

Sora yelped and looked to his left to see Fear and Sadness giving him concerned looks. He smiled at them and returned his gaze to the junk pile.

"A pity we don't have binoculars. We could climb up these and try and scout out Anger and Disgust," Sora said.

"Well, we might not be able to see the other island but make enough noise and if we're lucky, we might just find one of them," Fear said.

"Then we should split up. You guys go in that direction and I'll head this way. If you need any help, just scream or whatever and I'll come running. I have my Keyblade so I'll just cast some magic if I find them," Sora said. "And we'll meet back at the bridge to Family Island after a bit, okay?" Sora proposed.

"You'll be alright, Sora? I'm not so sure it's a good idea to split up," Sadness said.

"Of course it is. The island isn't that big anyway so I'll be with you guys before you know it. Sometimes, you just gotta go for it, you know? This is explorer's island. Explore a little," Sora said, waving his hands about. Sadness made no rebuttals, something he was thankful for because as soon as he was out of sight he sat down and set the Memory Core next to him.

Carrying that thing around was a heavier burden than he had anticipated. It probably didn't help that his own memories at that age had never felt so… depressing. That was the worst part. As he found himself taking in these new memories, he found himself looking back on his own ones in an effort to validate his own existence. To set himself apart from memories that weren't his own. Comparing his own happiness to Stephanie's sadness made him feel all the more entitled. Not that he could have done anything to help her and he didn't even know what particularly had made her sad in this memory. He only knew from its touch that the memories he held were sad ones.

"Just had to be a hero, didn't you? Well, no turning back now, idiot," he said to himself. He looked at the Memory Core, with disdain at first only for his expression to soften. They were Stephanie's memories. The last thing he wanted to do was place the blame on her for something not in her control. He had done this before, taking on other people's hurt. He could do it one more time.

With the Memory Core in hand, Sora set off once more. Something entered his view that he thought peculiar, forcing him to stop and ponder. It was the Gummi Ship, the Royal Highwind, which had brought Stephanie to so many new frontiers. Now that he thought about it like that, it was no wonder that it was in Explorer's Island of all places. But the biggest question had yet to be answered. Was it functional?

As he took a few steps forward, the ground began to morph again. When he looked below him, he found that he was crouched halfway up the stairs looking at the shoe cabinet. He grabbed the railing with his small child-like hands and peered in between the bars towards the living room where two voices could be heard conversing.

"I offer my condolences, Colette. I tried. I really did," Ansem said.

"I don't understand. What are you talking abou-"

"I did everything I could to keep him safe and I want you to know that no matter what, he loved you until the very end. It is a love I am deeply jealous of-"

Sora couldn't hear anymore. Colette suddenly let out a wail and began weeping in earnest. Confused, Stephanie trod lightly back up the stairs and went into her room. She sat down on the bed and cupped her hands. After a while, she stood up and began doing as her mother instructed. She wasn't entirely sure why, because she hadn't been planning on doing it despite her mother's insistence, but for some reason something was telling her that it was what she needed to do right now.

Sora heard the sound of a door shut as he opened the Gummi Ship's door to step inside. The inconsistency of action and sound threw him for a loop. He placed a hand on the console panel and dragged his fingers across its frame until he stopped at the seats in front of him. Taking seat in the middle chair he held on to the Memory Core while issuing a pensive stare at nothing in particular.

After a while, he heard the sounds of footsteps coming up the stairs. The pattern was irregular to how many steps Colette took at a time, but soon enough she had arrived on the landing. The door opened wide enough and Stephanie rushed over.

"I did it, mom. See? All clean. Mom? Are you okay?" Stephanie asked.

"Steph, I- I need you to sit down… on the bed. You have to promise me something before I say anything, okay?" Colette asked.

Stephanie nodded and did as her mother asked of her. "Of course, mom. What is it?"

"That mommy can hug you for as long as she wants afterward, okay?"

"Silly! You can do that anytime," Stephanie said.

Colette nodded in a manner so timid and defeated that Sora couldn't believe he was looking at the same person. She took Stephanie's hands in her own and looked her—looked Sora— straight in the eyes.

"Stephanie… oh, Stephanie… your-"

"AGH!" With a furious roar, Sora threw the Memory Core halfway across the room. He didn't even check to make sure it was alright. He had heard enough. Actually, he wasn't sure he could watch more even if he tried. He rubbed at his burning eyes and sniffled a bit. He was glad he was alone now because he imagined he looked a right mess as he was now.

He sat like that for another minute, his elbows against the console panel and his face resting in his hands. After a while, he steeled himself and began flicking some of the switches in an effort to get the ship working.

"Nada. Of course," Sora whispered. He spun the chair around to face the inner bowels of the ship and stood up, heading farther inside. Reaching the hatch at the end of the hallway, he opened it up and climbed down into the engine room. Everything seemed to be a faithful recreation of the original ship, probably to the many times they had played hide and seek around the ship. He wasn't sure how exactly this would work with a ship that technically didn't exist, but he wanted to at least try anyway.

On the other side of the technological landfill, Disgust grinded her teeth frustrated as she stepped over piece by piece of junk littered across the floor.

"So gross… Anger, hun, clean up around here a bit for me, please," she said.

"A bit. Just a bit. Sure, toots, I believe that. How about you quit your complaining and actually put in some effort yourself for once!" Anger yelled.

"And ruin my perfect skin? No thanks! You know I don't do well with mess. And we still have a few islands to cover as well to find the others. I just hope we find them quick."

"Though I have to say… does this… really have to be EVERYWHERE?" In a fit of a frustration, Anger kicked at a television in the way only to literally explode in fiery rage as he howled in pain.

"Wow… what exactly did you expect? You don't think, do you?" Disgust said.

"Oh, shut up!" Anger whined.

Disgust rolled her eyes and inspected her fingernails. "Typical."

"Oh, well done, you just made an obvious comment. Last I checked, all any of us are is typical!"

"Then you're the most typical of us all," Disgust said.

"Ho ho ho, good joke, Little Miss Sunshine. Oh wait, you're more the cloud signalling the oncoming storm," Anger replied.

Disgust shrugged. "Better that than the storm."

"We're not intruding on anything, are we?"

Disgust and Anger turned around to see Fear and Sadness carefully climbing their way down a junk pile to reach them.

"Well, that was sooner than expected," Disgust said with a raised brow.

"Well, Anger always was a loud one," Sadness said somewhat quietly.

"See? There's still some use for me," Anger arrogantly proclaimed. "No Joy with you?"

"Joy… she…" Fear looked over at Sadness before launching into an explanation of what had happened on Care Island as well as the help they were receiving from the outside.

"Sora? The Sora?" Disgust asked with her mouth agape.

"No, he means the other Sora from dewberry lane. Of course it's THAT Sora! HOW MANY OTHER SORAS DO YOU KNOW?" Anger snapped.

"And he's got Joy's Memory Core so we can get back to headquarters and save Stephanie now! Maybe," Sadness quickly added as an afterthought.

"Oh, don't get too optimistic there, Little Girl Blue."

"Why do I get the feeling that the lack of Joy is going to expose just what a bunch of negative nancys the rest of us are?" Disgust pointed out.

"Um, is it just me or did I see something move over there?" Fear asked, pointing to a pile of junk on their right.

"Oh, don't do that. I really… really… don't want to hear that," Disgust said, keeping her eyes upward.

Back at the Gummi Ship, Sora had finished installing a few components he had found amongst the junk nearby and wiped his brow, satisfied with his work. If he dared say so himself he'd make a pretty great mechanic, if he wasn't so lazy. After observing Chip and Dale for some time, he knew how to diagnose a problem and it just so happened by convenience sake, he had found exactly what he needed to make an engine work. Switching out a few wires and replacing certain Gummi blocks for fuel and power efficiency had done the trick. The engine roared to life and the floor underneath his back began to vibrate.

"Oh, you beauty," Sora said. He got back on his feet and hurried for the top. Running into the cockpit, he slowed down as his eyes caught sight of the Memory Core on the ground again, seemingly still intact. Feeling remorseful, he picked it up and set it on the chair next to him. He looked up at the monitor hanging on the windshield—the scanner which provided data such as incoming enemies, strange items of interest and worlds. He picked up on the yellow dots, five in total, as the radar picked up on their location. Four of them made sense, or at least he hoped so. But the fifth…

"Alright. You can purr but can you fly?" Sora asked. He grabbed the lever and pulled downward before grabbing the control stick. As the Gummi Ship rose into the air, the solid structure of junk surrounding it began to fall apart. He brought the lever forward and the Gummi Ship took flight once more. In no time flat, Sora was able to locate the four emotions. He lowered the ship and opened up the door, rushing from the chair to meet them.

"Surprise!" Sora exclaimed, popping his head out of the ship. He looked upon each of their baffled faces in amusement only for his smile to disappear when something emerged out of the junk. Its limbs were strings of darkness, attaching themselves to whatever junk it could find to give itself armor. The result was an artist's worst nightmare of colors mashed together to form a hulk of a beast.

Sora looked away from it and back at the others. "So… do you prefer that thing's company or mine?"

Their minds decided in an instant, Sora helped them up one by one into the ship. Sadness was the last to come aboard and Sora closed the door behind them just as the armored beast slammed into the side of the Gummi Ship.

"Everyone, hold on to something!" Sora yelled.

"Can I hold on to you?" Disgust asked coquettishly.

"Err, something other than me," he formalized. The ship was slammed into again and Sora saw the Memory Core roll off from the chair and hit the floor. He ran over to the chair and grabbed at the lever before pulling. The ship ascended again only to give a sudden jolt that threw everyone completely off balance. Sora hit the console panel with his arms first and looked up at the monitor to see the beast grabbing onto the Gummi Ship from the back.

"Got any plans right about now, spike?" Anger asked.

"Yeah, how about feeding you to it? Calm down and let me think for a moment, will ya?" Sora snapped.

"With all due respect, now isn't exactly the time to be rational and calm about this!" Fear yelled whilst cowering in the shape of a ball.

"Okay, let's see… can't use the acceleration so the main engine needs more power. If it could just get an extra burst of energy, we could get out of here," Sora said.

"And how do we go about doing that?" Sadness asked.

"Well, Gummi blocks are great at reacting to the environment because of their elasticity. So, I guess if the temperature of the engine Gummi were to increase, that would give me the burst of speed I need," Sora said. "A good bit of fire magic would work but I need to be able to get away quickly and none of you know how to fly this."

"Just a bit of fire, you say? We've got it covered. What does the engine look like?" Disgust said. She was glancing over at Anger with a sneaky smile.

"Looks like a hexagonal prism. You can't miss it if you tried," Sora said.

"Got it. Anger, you're with me," Disgust said.

"Hey! Who made you the boss?" Anger whined even despite following after Disgust anyway.

Sora watched them leave and gave Sadness and Fear a nod before bringing the lever and control stick forward. "As for the two of you… you might want to hang on tight."

Down below in the engine room, Anger and Disgust managed to find the engine in the center of the room.

"Great, we found it. Now what? I still don't understand why you brought us here," Anger said.

"I do. Well, I think I do. You need to get angry, Angry," Disgust said.

"Er, what?"

"Ugh, how clueless can you be? I don't see anyone else who gets heated up here as easily as you, dimwit!" Disgust yelled.

"Hey! Who are you calling a dimwit?"

"Oh, sorry. Was that word too big for that puny brain of yours to comprehend? How about blockhead instead? I think that suits you to a tee."

He didn't seem to realize it himself but smoke was starting to pour out from Anger's head. Satisfied with this, Disgust pressed on. "Really, it can't be a coincidence that you're the shortest of us here, even shorter than Sadness. It's kind of cute actually. Can I pinch your pwecious lil chubby cheeks!"

"Hey, stop that! STOP!" Anger kept slapping Disgust's hand away as she tried to physically tease him. Eventually he completely lost his temper. Letting out a growl of frustration, fire lashed out from his head, striking the engine behind him. The burst of speed was felt immediately and both Disgust and Anger were thrown off their feet as they felt the ship shoot forward.

Anger sat up and glared at Disgust. "I don't care if you just saved our skin. Never do that again!"

"Trust me, no one is more thoroughly disgusted in my actions than I," Disgust replied with a grimace.

When the two reached the cockpit of the Gummi Ship again, they saw the massive landscape of Stephanie's heart as Sora flew farther from Explorer's Island. To the left of that island was one Sora hadn't explored. On it were statues of five people surrounded by a home and a garden full of colorful flowers. In the middle was Stephanie, embraced by her father and mother. That only made sense—it was Family Island after all. The other two statues on the island however came as a surprise to Sora. He smiled and looked over at Disgust and Anger quickly before focusing back on the panoramic view.

"I'm taking you guys home," Sora said. With any luck solving one of their problems would help solve all of them. He could always hope.


	69. Cold Venom

**Chapter 68**

 **Cold Venom**

 ** _Headquarters, Inside Stephanie's Heart_**

As he turned the Gummi Ship around, the spinning top shaped headquarters gradually came into Sora's view. Sora had seen it from each of the other islands. It was like the sun, emitting a pure light in an otherwise myriad of purples, pinks and greens. Its dome like structure was supported by a thin stalk going all the way down into the Memory Dump.

Once he had centered it in the middle, he brought the lever forward to accelerate. With ease, it smashed through the glass and skidded on the floor, crashing into a few of the support pillars and stopping just short of the console panel in the middle of the room. Sora opened the door and the emotions all hurried out in a bundle. Sora was about to follow only to remember he had almost forgotten the other Memory Core.

"Just have to be quick about it," Sora murmured. He grabbed the Core and ran out of the ship. Around him were many more orbs of different colors all stacked on shelves going around the perimeter of the room. What the other emotions seemed more concerned about, however, was the circular tray in the middle of the room which had five recesses embedded into its side. Sora assumed that was where the Core Memories were supposed to go, if five other orbs weren't already all inserted.

"This isn't possible! But how?" Fear asked. "How could there be two of the same Memory Core? Are they fake?"

"I don't think so. I was wondering how the islands were being powered without their Memory Cores. It didn't make sense," Sadness explained.

"Well if it occurred to you, why didn't you tell us sooner?" Anger asked.

"I… thought it was kind of obvious so I didn't say anything," Sadness replied, looking as though she were about to cry at any moment.

"Hey, what's done is done, okay? So what do we do now?" Sora asked.

"I mean… do we need to do anything if they're already here?" Disgust asked.

"Of course we do! The poor kid's still sleeping," Anger said, pointing to the large monitor in the room.

"Okay. Let's slow down here. The ones we have right now are the real memories and they're supposed to go in this table thing, right?" Sora asked.

"Yes, they're all very important memories for Stephanie. I'm carrying the first ever time she received an A on her test," Sadness said. "It seems more like something Joy would appreciate but… she's not here."

"So Joy got a sad Core Memory and you got a happy one," Sora said, amused at the sheer irony of it all.

He looked around quickly. Those duplicate memories weren't the only thing that felt off. He had thought the piece of Kingdom Hearts would have been somewhere around here but unless it had found somewhere to hide, then it wasn't here. If it had been responsible for the duplicate memories however it had been here at least at some point. And it had duplicated the memories… because it needed a host. Stephanie was better off alive to the heart piece than dead, just like the Heartless who had been living inside Luna's heart.

Still, even if it hadn't meant to harm Stephanie, it was disrupting her heart's ecosystem. Memories and the emotions they held that had been tempered over time had been taken to their extremes. And the heart had definitely been behind the deliberate machinations to stop Sora, Joy and the others from meeting up and getting to headquarters. And then there was Wrath's appearance and the build-up of darkness to counter the light.

That was when a thought struck him. What if the piece of heart had done the same thing as its owner and had delved into the darkness to hide itself? From the first moment he had seen light and darkness clashing with each other on Tabletop Island, he had completely ruled out the idea without thinking that one would use the other. He had just gone with it because they were opposing forces. Had he not been thinking in such myopic terms he would have come to that conclusion much sooner, though to be fair being chased by a tornado wasn't exactly the time for introspection.

"Let's just concentrate on swapping these with ours. Even if they are real I didn't spend all this time protecting this just to find out it was all for nothing," Anger said.

"If that's what you want… Sadness, can you hold onto this for me?" Sora asked, offering her the Memory Core. When she took it from him to make two in her possession, Sora grabbed onto the first orb on the left and tried to pull. "Argh! This… isn't… gonna be… easy…"

He gritted his teeth and tensed his arms while pulling back as hard as he could. Eventually the orb popped out and Sora stumbled backwards with it in his hands. He watched as one of the five lights lit up on the ground disappeared. Not too long after, Family Island, previously illuminated and beautiful, had become engulfed in shadow.

"Okay, Sadness. Put the other Memory Core in," Anger said. Sadness nodded and timidly stretched forward the hand with which she had taken Sora's Memory Core.

"Sadness, wait! Not yet," Sora said. Sadness flinched at this and panicked as she launched both Memory Cores in the air. She was a pretty good juggler, Sora had to admit, as he watched her try to regain control.

"What do you mean wait? If we wait then Stephanie might not be the same again?" Fear asked.

 _That's a risk I'm going to have to take_ , Sora thought. He dropped the Memory Core in his hand and walked back to the dish, taking the next Memory Core into his hand. After just as much effort as the last one, the second Memory Core finally came out. And then the third. And the fourth. Each time he did so, an island went dark. Explorer's Island, then Care Island and finally Imagination Island until only Tabletop was left standing. If it was going to take the bait, it was now or never.

"Hey, are you insane? What are-"

"It's here," Sora said, ignoring Anger's rant. He stepped closer to the Gummi Ship and looked out of the window to see a tornado, twisting elegantly like a coil as it flew towards headquarters. "You guys just focus on getting those Memory Cores back in, okay?"

"What are you going to do?" Sadness asked.

"Kill two birds with one stone," Sora said. He frowned and looked at Sadness. "I'm sorry. That's such a mean expression, isn't it? What did the birds ever do to whoever came up with that? Anyway, lame joke. It's time to save Joy and Stephanie."

He took off quickly, heading back inside the Gummi Ship. After closing the door, he took another look at his target before booting up the ship again. He flicked a switch to reverse the thrusters and brought himself out of headquarters, performing a flip and roll to turn around.

"Don't look at its eyes, huh?" Sora murmured as he faced down the tornado. He pushed forward on the thrusters and stick and the Gummi Ship shot forward. Hordes of dark creatures shot forth out of the tornado in a similar fashion, their eyes a formidable red. Without any gunners to help him, the Gummi Ship was practically defenceless in all save the armor on its back. Instead, he could only rely on his own technique and experience as a pilot to help him.

He swerved left and right, avoiding most of the torrential downpour that descended on him. He felt some clip against the side of the ship a few times but otherwise things seemed to be going well for him. He pulled a feint and dived straight for the Memory Dump before pulling up closer to the tornado. Now that he was so close to it, he was coming to the point where it would be impossible to avoid getting hit. He just hoped the ship's durability would be good enough to get him inside.

He braced himself for hell and charged for the demons' den. As darkness battered the ship left and right, he rocked back and forth in his seat. At the sound of the alarm, Sora looked up at the monitor. He had a lost an engine. It was fine though. The shaking had stopped. He had successfully emerged on the other side. The eye of the storm.

In the tornado itself, it was like he were somewhere else entirely. It was dark and quiet and calm and everything it really shouldn't be. He opened the door and looked outside. Nothing awaited him, or so he thought at first. He summoned the Keyblade and lit it up, holding it out in front of him. In the distance he could make out something, like a tiny light.

He ran over to the console panel and guided the ship forward to where he had seen the light. The weight and feel of the controls had changed. They were more light and floaty than before. He glided the ship forward and as he got near he began to see a figure in the darkness. Joy was curled into a ball, her eyes closed and a peaceful smile on her face. Most surprising (though it probably shouldn't have been considering what he had figured out), in her arms, she cradled the sixth piece of Kingdom Hearts.

Sora stood on the edge of the ship and waited until the ship was just sailing past Joy before jumping out, or more like gliding out, to catch her. Before his hand could find themselves around her wrist, darkness shot out and grabbed his own wrist. He tried to wrestle his arm away but he felt the oppressiveness of a rope binding him without any of the fibers or weight.

He summoned his Keyblade in his left hand and cut at the dark tendrils trapping him. He turned and brought his Keyblade forward, aiming its tip at the heart in Joy's hands. He noticed he was moving considerably slower as time went on. Something also seemed to be crawling and clawing at his skin but he ignored it and pushed onwards.

The darkness was trying to choke him. Or was it the light? As he moved closer to the heart, he found it harder to breathe. He moved his hand up and tried to massage his throat but he instead only found himself swallowing the darkness around him.

 _This is… impossible…_

Sora gave another look at Joy, completely unaware of what was taking place around her. Why was it that he felt so far away when he was _this_ close? It was maddening. If he didn't do something now then he was sure to be lost within Wrath just like Joy.

 _ **Luna told me to tell you to hurry up and wake me already, lazy bones. Well, it's not the way I would have put it but… does it help?**_

"Stephanie!" Sora silently mouthed. Her voice had made things clearer. Suddenly, he could see the enemy before him in all its glory. Darkness coveted by light. Its eyes really were horrifying, and he had been warned not to look at them, but now that he did, he did not feel panic, but rather a strange confidence and it had manifested because he could see something he could not before.

Unlike the other emotions, Wrath lacked a physical form, but his hatred ran hot like fire, and it was that fire that Sora was seeing now. In fact, it was an anger that could not be bottled. It was hard to imagine that such a hatred for all things could belong to one being but here it was before him. And Stephanie… no, everyone, had something like this inside them. A deep venom that longed for destruction above all things.

Sora smiled at Wrath and then turned his eyes away. He would reach the heart. He would save Joy and Stephanie. He wasn't about to let her and Luna down now and certainly not himself.

He could feel powerful forces slamming into his back, clinging to his skin, trying to force their way into his nostrils and mouth, but his fortitude to endure was greater than it had ever been. With a roar, he forced his arm, black as charcoal, upwards and touched the heart with the Keyblade.

A bright light dispelled the darkness around him. He looked back at Joy to see her eyes were open and she was beaming at him.

"I had the strangest dream… it was so pleasant. Stephanie and I were talking. She was in front of me and I was in her room and we were… talking!" Joy squealed.

"Sorry to wake you up," Sora said.

Joy shook her head. "I'm glad you did. If I had spent any longer there I probably wouldn't have wanted to leave. But I have a job to do. Say, Sora?"

"Yeah?"

"What exactly is holding us in the air?" Joy asked.

"Err," Sora looked down to see the tornado had disappeared. Below him he could see the Memory Dump waiting to swallow them in its vastness. He gave another look at Joy before letting out a scream alongside her as they plummeted downwards.

"Well, I mean look on the bright side. Stephanie's probably awake now! I would be perfectly fine if it were just me here but now you're involved when you really shouldn't be. I'm so sorry, Sora," Joy said.

"Hey, it's not over until the fat lady sings. And this lady has quite a bit of breath in her yet," Sora said. He looked down to see the Gummi Ship tumbling downwards as well. "Alright, take my hand."

"Huh? Okay," Joy said. She reached out with her fingertips and Sora managed to intertwine his fingers between hers.

"You just need to follow everything I tell you and don't question it, okay?" Sora asked. Joy nodded and he looked below him again. "Okay. We need to dive faster."

"WHAT?! Oh, fine. It's not like it matters at this point whether I break my legs first or my head," Joy said. She and Sora tilted forward, cutting through the air. Throughout the entire affair, he had to check that he was still holding onto Joy's hand.

"Okay, now ease up!" Sora yelled once they were past the Gummi Ship. The both pulled up, Sora leaning to one side slightly as he did so. Their speed decelerated, Sora guided them into the open Gummi Ship door where they hit the wall on the opposite side.

"That was nuts…" Joy said, placing a hand on her chest. She looked at Sora. "Is it kind of weird that I want to do that again?"

"If we don't get out of here, it'll be the last time you'll ever do it," Sora said, as he shakily stood up. He stumbled over to the seat and took his place before quickly booting the system online. Hopefully losing an engine wouldn't make things too problematic.

The Gummi Ship levelled itself out after a desperate wrestle with the controls. He waited for Joy to seat herself next to him and pulled up on the lever. With the ship turned facing upwards to the light, Sora looked at Joy and nudged his head towards the lever. Understanding what he meant, Joy smiled and placed her hand over Sora's hand. "Good luck."

"Right back at you," Sora said. He brought the lever forward again and the remaining two engines propelled them forward. Their head rocked back and forth against the headrests of their seats.

"Out of the dark…" Sora said, as they emerged out of the Memory Dump.

"To a world where the sun shines," Joy finished. She let go of the lever and relaxed into the chair with a smile. Sora also took in the relit islands one last time before flying directly back to headquarters. By the time they had reached, the second engine had also blown out. It wasn't something on any of their minds though and least of all not Sora's as he watched Joy jump out of the ship to reunite with the other emotions.

"Thanks everyone. I couldn't have done it without you," Joy said.

"Yeah, well that might be true but next time don't be such a damn hero! What's Stephanie gonna do without you?" Anger asked.

Joy smiled sheepishly and looked back to the screen. Her mouth fell agape as she saw Luna looking back at her. Sora, also watching the scene unfold, teared up when he saw a pair of small arms wrap around Luna's neck.

" _Thank you, Sora. Thank you,_ " Luna whispered as tears escaped her own eyes.

"Well, that's my cue," Sora said, stepping out of the Gummi Ship proper.

"Will we ever see you again?" Sadness asked.

"I don't know, but as long as I can see Stephanie then I'll definitely see you, and you'll see me," Sora said. "Joy, keep being the life of the party. Sadness, I'm counting on you to look after Joy, okay? If she gets too excited, you need to be the voice of reason. Also it doesn't hurt to smile every once in a while, even when there's no reason to."

"I'll try…" Sadness replied, fostering a small smile.

"Fear, sometimes it's best to not listen to your first instinct, but I know you'll guide Stephanie down the right path and it's not like you'll be the only one. Anger, stay cool. Not too cool though, it did help out after all. And Disgust? Might be an unpopular but spinach isn't all that bad," Sora said. He summoned his Keyblade and pointed it over them, creating a keyhole. The Keyblade's beam of light and the keyhole met and a bright glow filled the room. Joy took a step forward and reached out just as Sora disappeared in a flash of light.

"So… what are we gonna do about this hunk of junk?" Disgust asked, pointing to the Gummi Ship.

* * *

Before Sora could open his eyes, he was assaulted from all sides by warm bodies. Dizzy from all the bodies surrounding him, Sora put his hand in front to create some distance as he tried to figure everything out. He felt strangely lightheaded, something he had never felt before when leaving another person's heart. All the action had probably finally caught up with him.

Sora winked as Luna kissed him hard on the cheek. "I'm so glad you're alright. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

"I could say the same to you. I heard Stephanie's voice while I was in there." Sora looked at the nine-year-old sitting in bed. "She told me you told her to tell me to hurry up. Boy, that's a mouthful. Anyway, I guess the point is if I hadn't heard that message I wouldn't be here right now so… thank you. Both of you."

"I don't really get what you mean but I'm glad I could help," Stephanie said, flashing him a grin.

"Not that I mean to break up the mood, but your appearances have reverted back to their original forms. It's best you don't stay around for long," Ienzo said.

"Sora, I've made my mind up. I want to come with you. As long as those guys are here, this isn't the Radiant Garden I know and love," Jayne said.

"I agree with you. If I knew you were safe somewhere else, it'd do better to soothe my conscience," Sora said. He blinked quickly, still feeling dazed, and sat down on the bed next to Stephanie. "And… it would make me feel better if Stephanie could come too. Is that fine, Ienzo?"

"She seems alright. Of course, I'd usually tell you to give her a few days rest just so we can monitor her condition to make sure everything really is alright but everything's going to move fast from here on out. The best recovery she can receive is one far away from here at the moment," Ienzo said.

"So I'm going to another world with you guys?" Stephanie asked.

"To a kingdom far far away from here," Luna replied with a smile. She looked over to the door for a moment and Sora followed her gaze to see Artemis standing there.

"They're coming. Horus," she said.

"They've already found us?" Luna asked.

"Who?" Jayne asked, unable to see or hear Artemis. Luna repeated the hunter goddess' words to her. Jayne glanced at Naomi before replying. "Well, they may have figured out some of their guys have gone missing and traced it back to us."

"Guess you're not going back home for a while then," Naomi said.

"And neither are you if they start looking into my connections and the people I hang out with," Jayne said.

"Oh, I know I'm doomed, honey. I accepted that a good while ago," Naomi said. Sora grabbed a fear that the three fairies had given him from within his pocket and blew on it. Not too long after, Flora, Fauna and Merryweather popped into being after a dazzling twinkle display.

"You've done what you came here to do, dears?" Flora asked.

"Yes. We'd also like to take these three along with us if that isn't too much trouble," Sora said, pointing to Stephanie, Jayne and Naomi.

"Of course. And you?" Fauna looked to Ienzo inquisitively who shook his head.

"Just remember what I told you. Give me a little bit of time," Ienzo said, looking at Luna.

Luna nodded. "It's going to be worth it, I just know it. You should leave by the window."

Ienzo gave her a quick nod to show he understood. "Now go."

"You heard the man," Sora said to the three fairies.

"Then hold hands. Quickly now. Alright, together now on three," Flora said to her sisters. The three fairies waved their wands in sync and Sora felt the familiar experience of being shoved through a narrow tube that he had experienced only the teensiest of hours ago.

Soon, they arrived on the grassy outskirts of Corona, near the lake.

"Wait… what just… we were there and- and now we're…" Naomi's eyes grew big as she tried to piece things together.

"Yes, yes, dear, please try to keep up," Flora said.

"So this is it. This is what you guys get to experience so often. I'm so jealous," Jayne said.

"Just wait until I take you to Luna's city. You'll enjoy it there. Capital of the arts," Sora replied.

"I'd probably enjoy just about anywhere you took me," Jayne said. She walked over to one of the trees and placed her palm against the trunk. She laughed and looked at Naomi. "Real trees. The soil around Radiant Garden had become so infertile for some reason. Everything stopped growing."  
"Because of that wicked witch and her nasty minions, I bet," Merryweather said, receiving nods from the other two fairies.

"So the Epcot gardens..." Luna started.

"Artificial soil, thanks to Xanatos. There is a pond near the school though. It's the only place where fertile soil still exists," Jayne said. "But because of that it's also designated high priority conservation land which means it's not meant to disturbed."

He and Luna knew it well, having spent as much time there together as they did. They had no idea just how sacred it was in the grand scheme of things though. He hoped they hadn't desecrated or disrespected holy ground in any way and with how Luna was looking at him, he could make a pretty educated guess she was thinking the same thing.

"Well, should we see what going on around town? We do have three people with us who haven't seen it yet," Luna said.

"Careful, Luna. Take any more in and they'll think we're trying to take over," Sora said.

"Nah, they wouldn't think that. They've been incredibly hospitable and generous. You guys will be right at home here," Luna replied.

"I know, I'm joking. Anyway, I need to head back to the castle. I'm feeling kind of tired. You took a lot out of me, Stephanie," Sora said. In truth, he felt worse than that. For some reason he still felt dizzy. It took a lot to put on a brave face and keep it together in front of them.

"I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you," Stephanie said.

"Ah, no need. I'd do it again if I had to, gladly," Sora said, looking into her eyes in hopes of reaching something beyond her. "Alright. Have fun, girls."

After they exchanged their goodbyes, Sora started off into town with quick steps. His vision was getting blurrier with each step he took. Small dark dots formed in his vision, growing and shrinking. Some would eventually disappear while others formed.

He made his way in between two buildings and placed a hand against the wall, shutting his eyes. Then, it happened. Bile rising up in the pit of the stomach like a geyser, he doubled over and threw up. His eyes opened and look off horror took over his features as he looked down at a pool of black ink on the ground by his feet. Ink? Or something worse… and it had come from him…

A chilling wind caused him to shiver. Somewhere not too far from him, he could hear the laughter of children.


End file.
